Heart of the Willows
by IloveCats1
Summary: Willowfeather's clan is constantly struggling- and when her mate, Sunheart, begins accusing her of not being loyal to him, her whole world slowly collapses. Sunheart drifts away and joins Darkshadow. Suddenly, her whole clan is turned against her, but they are totally unprepared for what awaits them... Next update- not anytime soon.
1. The Woes of Sunheart

**This is my first fanfiction, with completely original characters and hopefully a rather interesting plot (I have planned several chapters ahead and have already begun preparation). I hope that this isn't too long/short and I hope you enjoy!**

**I definitely do not own Warrior Cats and if any of these cats have the same name/personalities they are completely coincidental as I have not read very many of them (I have not read Squirrelflight's Hope, any of the Broken Code and more of the newer books) so that might be why. I also tend to not remember the less important characters in the older books. If they are similar to your own characters, I apologize as well- I tried my best. Okay, and one more apology- I just couldn't think up other names for clans so I used the normal ones instead. I hope you're okay with that!**

Willowfeather looked around anxiously. The clan was doing awfully- ShadowClan had attacked at the beginning of Leaf-Fall, and killed many of the warriors, followed by a terrible attack by a badger that had taken Brightcloud, one of their finest warriors and Willowfeather's only littermate, as well as Littlepaw, Brightcloud's young apprentice. They had been hunting together when a badger had decided to stroll in and by the time Brightcloud and Littlepaw were finally heard and found, it was far too late. They had lost three warriors to ShadowClan, Brightcloud and Littlepaw to the badger and finally, a bout of greencough took two apprentices and an elder.

They had seven warriors left, and there were two queens. Wildwind would be back to hunting in three moons, while Dawnflower, a terrible injury to her front leg meant she would stay in the nursery for the rest of her life unless she wanted to retire to the Elders' den. Dawnflower had never liked fighting and hadn't participated in the fight with ShadowClan, instead helping protect the weaker cats. Dawnflower wasn't a great fighter, but she had been a great hunter and was so calm and controlled she was usually chosen to be the leader of Border Patrols- until Sweetpaw, her apprentice, had nearly rolled off a cliff and to save her, Dawnflower had slipped and thorns had cut into her leg. Sweetpaw had been saved, but Dawnflower was never quite the same. Eventually, she had had kits and made the tough decision to stay in the nursery. Sweetpaw had become Willowfeather's apprentice.

"Gather, warriors, and receive your duties!" Goldberry, the beautiful deputy of the clan, yowled, and immediately, warriors began to gather around the she-cat. It was early morning, a good time for both hunting and border patrol, though since it was so cold, they never caught enough food.

"Snowcloud," Goldberry said, giving her mate a loving look. "I want you to lead a Hunting patrol. Let's see… we want one more hunting party and we need the Morning Border Patrol so I'm afraid we can only spare Darkshadow and Graypaw. Sunheart, Kestrelwing needs help gathering herbs because it's so cold, we could easily get sick, and Dawnflower isn't providing enough milk for her three kits, either. Kestrelwing needs protection because if the badger comes back, since Spottedpaw was a warrior apprentice first, she will probably be of some help but they need warrior protection. Mousetail and Dustfoot, you are going to come with me and Shadestar on border patrol, leaving Ambereye, Willowfeather and Sweetpaw to make up the final hunting party. Snowcloud, you need to go to the Human Home and Ambereye… try near the WindClan border. Not only can you keep an eye on the border with them until we arrive, there should be some rabbits down there… I hope." Goldberry looked uncertain for a moment.

"Are you _sure, _Goldberry?" Mousetail asked, eyes clouded with worry. "That leaves no warriors in the camp. _No one _in the camp apart from the queens. ShadowClan could come in and steal herbs, a fox could steal our fresh-kill, there are countless disasters."

Goldberry suddenly looked worried. "Well," She said uncertainly. "There are herbs near the Human Home, isn't there, Kestrelwing? Well, why doesn't Sunheart stay behind and Kestrelwing goes with Snowcloud's patrol? I'm sorry, Sunheart, I promise you'll get out of the camp today. How about once Ambereye's patrol comes back, Ambereye can take your place and you can go training with Willowfeather and Sweetpaw, stretch your paws a little. If you're okay with it, you'll be on the Night Territory Patrol as well. That way, you'll get out and about on our territory as much as anyone."

Sunheart nodded, face taut with worry. Willowfeather knew that her mate was worried he wouldn't be able to protect Kestrelwing's precious herbs and the queens. She headed over to him and brushed her pelt with his.

"You're a great warrior, Sunheart," She said encouragingly. "You'll be okay. Besides, we'll be back soon. I'll try to bring back something for us to eat together. Of course, the queens will have to eat first, but really, I will try."

Sunheart brightened and rubbed his head against his mate's jawline. "Good luck, Willowfeather," He said softly.

Unfortunately, hunting was not very good. Ambereye and Sweetpaw together had chased down a scrawny rabbit right at the edge of ThunderClan territory, a few metres into the moor. The ThunderClan territory was mostly forest, but there was a slight stretch of moor. Willowfeather had volunteered to try the edge of the forest, while Ambereye and Sweetpaw tried to the small edge of the moor. So far, the only catch was the rabbit- none of them had even caught a whiff of other prey.

Finally, Willowfeather spotted a thrush in the trees. She had never been talented at tree hunting, but she couldn't alert Ambereye without alerting the bird, and the clan just couldn't afford Willowfeather passing on a piece of prey. A thrush, no matter how scrawny and thin, could be what stopped a whole clan from starving to death. Hunger crawled at her belly as she looked at the thrush. She had completely passed on the little food available the day before, because she had felt the stronger cats, such as herself, needed to starve to keep others from starving, such as the queens, who had to eat to produce milk for their kits, and Darkshadow, who had received an injury as an apprentice and lost energy quite quickly.

At just the right moment, she leaped and snagged a claw into a branch and immediately jumped to the thrush. The brought it down but couldn't keep it.

"Mouse-dung!" She cursed herself, before leaping once more while the bird was still struggling and finally managed to bite down. It wasn't a clean catch, but it was still a catch. Still food.

Eventually, she hunted down a blackbird, delicious looking and rather well-sized, unlike the thrush, and carried the birds to Ambereye and Sweetpaw, who was staring gloomily at their dismal catch.

They brightened at the sight of the fat, juicy blackbird and slightly more disappointing thrush.

"That rabbit will feed Kestrelwing, Spottedpaw _and _the queens. The kits too, now that I think about it, Finchkit eats meat, now, doesn't he." Ambereye babbled excitedly. Spottedpaw was the medicine cat apprentice.

Shadestar was already back without the rest of the patrol- she had gotten too worried about the camp and turned back. Shadestar granted Willowfeather permission to take slightly more than usual (for Leaf-bare) to share with Sunheart, considering her weighty catch.

Still, Willowfeather knew her duties and took the blackbird to the nursery before tearing the wings off the thrush and taking them carefully. Neither Sunheart or herself had ever liked the bony, feathery wings, but she wanted to allow more hardworking warriors to take the nicer parts of the thrush. Afterall, all she would do that day was train Sweetpaw, later. One patrol and a bit of training simply wasn't enough work, in her opinion, since the clan was struggling so much. Every cat needed to pull their weight, and Willowfeather felt she wasn't doing enough.

She put one bloody wing down in front of Sunheart and kept the more feathered wing for herself. She sidled up to Sunheart and he moved away sadly.

They had only been mates since the start of Leaf-bare, but they were young. Willowfeather had had an affair with Stoneshade, a tom who had died fighting ShadowClan when they were apprentices and the first few days of being warriors before he had died. Willowfeather had only been a warrior for a season, Leaf-fall and the beginning of Leaf-bare, but she had never considered loving toms to be a crime, but perhaps it was.

"What is it, Sunheart?" Willowfeather asked, reaching her nose towards his pelt, but he stood up abruptly.

"Why are you even doing this to me?" He cried, voice wild and angry but eyes glittering with misery. "You never loved me! I'm second best to Stoneshade and you only became mates with me because you wanted someone to be with! Stoneshade visited me today, and he said he was glad I was mates with you because you didn't seem to miss him! So clearly, you like me for how useful I am, not _who _I am! I'm not even that useful! Goldberry knows, that's why she didn't send me on patrol, because I won't be any use on them!" His voice was wracked with sobs.

Willowfeather hadn't realized he was so upset with her loving Stoneshade first. She absolutely was devoted to Sunheart, and would never have used such a sweet, loyal cat as a tool. It was cruel to deceive any cat, but especially to lie to such an honest, trustworthy one.

"That's not true," Willowfeather choked. She was filled with anger to Sunheart for being so silly, absolute fury at Stoneshade for being so tactless, sadness that Sunheart didn't like her and a range of other emotions. "Don't be so silly, I would never do that." Despite always trying to be fair and kind, Willowfeather had always noticed how Darkshadow was always trying to get Sunheart's attention and now, images of the two being together filled her mind.

"Don't lie to me!" Sunheart yowled miserably. "You know, Darkshadow actually likes _me, _not just how _useful _I can be!" With that, he turned tail and stormed off.

With a whoosh, all feeling, every emotion and sense was sucked out of Willowfeather. She felt no pain, no anger, no _anything. _She just felt empty, and her mind failed her.

Willowfeather, wheezing and in shock, stumbled back to her nest, returning the thrush wings on the way. She couldn't _believe _Sunheart had said all those horrible things to her.

**I hope this all works out and it wasn't too terrible! I would love it if you reviewed and everything. Feel free to use some of my characters if you really liked them, just please don't use the exact same storyline.**

**By the way, this is **_**not**_ **based on most of the couples in warriors such as Sandstorm/Firestar, Nightcloud/Crowfeather or Squirrelflight/Bramblestar. Alright, I took inspiration, but this is going to take a few odd turns and then I promise, it'll be completely different. Sorry if this is similar to your stories as well! That is purely a coincidence. Plus, it will probably change in later chapters.**

**Please tell me if you enjoyed this first chapter! I'll try to update often but school is just about to start and everything so it will be sort of difficult.**


	2. Darkshadow's Contempt

**Second Chapter, got it done fast but it'll take a lot longer I think.**

**I'm sorry, I found a few errors in my last chapter- it says 'Human Home' but it should say 'Twoleg Home'. Oops!**

**Well, I hope you enjoy this chapter as well!**

When Willowfeather woke, she felt deep pain, as if she had been clawed at by a badger in her sleep. But it wasn't physical pain.

"Nothing happened!" She told herself firmly. She eventually convinced herself it was a dream, a harmless dream, until she saw that Sunheart's nest was gone. It had been moved, or stripped away.

"Sunheart just went out to collect new moss, probably," She said cheerfully, memories of the conversation flooding her head. Suddenly, something else popped into her head.

_Training with Sweetpaw!_

Willowfeather shook her head furiously. How could she have been so careless? The clan desperately needed new warriors- she couldn't waste a moment.

She bounced up, but on her way out, bumped into Sunheart and Darkshadow.

Sunheart just gritted his teeth and pushed through, but Darkshadow stood in the way indignantly.

"How _could _you use him like that?" She cried. "He loved you! He cared for you! You were just using him, you horrible excuse of a cat! How dare you! Just because you liked Stoneshade and he died… well, wasn't he lucky to die, maybe you should go join him!" With a loud snort, Darkshadow pushed through, limping slightly.

Willowfeather stood in shock. She had _never _heard any clan cat wishing _death _on another cat, or saying it was lucky that a cat died. It was against the warrior code, and she was in good mind to go to Shadestar, but that wouldn't do anything. She hurriedly went over to the apprentice den, only to find that Sweetpaw had been waiting outside the warriors' den.

"I heard the conversation," Sweetpaw said softly. "What happened? Did something happen between you and Sunheart?"

"You don't say!" Willowfeather mewed miserably. In a soft voice as they made their way to the training clearing, she explained everything.

"I loved him, I truly did. I want to tell him I'm sorry about Stoneshade, but Darkshadow's glued to his side, and he hates me anyway. He was everything to me- how could this all happen in one day?"

Suddenly, though Willowfeather knew they couldn't afford to lose time training, she didn't want to train. It was a training session she would have done with Sunheart- and everything to do with him was more painful than anything.

They went hunting instead, and instead of Willowfeather hunting as well, she instructed Sweetpaw and realized how much the young she-cat had improved. The little calico apprentice was probably almost ready to be a warrior- then Willowfeather thought of how happy and enthusiastic Sunheart would have been about the great news and bowed her head.

"Everything will work out," Sweetpaw said quietly through the two mice she had caught. Clearly, Willowfeather wasn't doing a very good job of hiding her feelings.

Willowfeather shook her head as they reached the camp. She looked at Darkshadow and Sunheart. They were sharing a mouse and so close together they looked like one cat with two heads.

"No," She said softly. "I don't think things will be alright again."

**A much shorter chapter than the last one and it didn't have too many developments except the one without Darkshadow and Sunheart.**

**If you are currently enjoying this series please tell me, it is my first fanfiction so if you don't like it please be nice. I hope you enjoyed and I think the next chapter will also be released shortly! Thank you so, **_**so **_**much for reading!**


	3. Sweetpaw's 'accident'

**New Chapter!**

**I'm still learning the ropes of writing, but I hope you're all enjoying this.**

**If you spotted something I could improve on, please tell me!**

It was a moon after Sunheart had so cruelly accused Willowfeather of using him.

Sunheart now ignored her completely, and because Darkshadow and Sunheart were so popular, almost everyone in the clan also hated her. To top it off, Goldberry had moved to the nursery- and every memory of what Willowfeather and Sunheart had once been was like a stab in the heart.

The only cats who would actually talk to her in a nice way were Sweetpaw, Kestrelwing, Goldberry and Shadestar, though Goldberry and Kestrelwing were unusually formal. The others all snickered at her as she went past, took the last piece of fresh-kill when she hadn't eaten _anything, _and always mimicked Stoneshade's death.

Willowfeather was upset, yes, but mostly, she was _angry._

How _dare _they insult Stoneshade's memory? They didn't even have any proof that anyone had done anything wrong! The cruelty of it all was enough for her to be falling apart when it came to hunting.

Sweetpaw was really the only one who didn't talk to her because they had to. Both Shadestar and Goldberry were obliged to talk to her, but Sweetpaw could have just asked for a new mentor.

"You've improved," Willowfeather said to Sweetpaw one day. "I'll ask Goldberry about your final assessment."

Sweetpaw looked up happily. She had caught a lovely squirrel that would be perfect for the queens, and it had been such a clean catch that, as much as Willowfeather would miss the apprentice, she had no choice but to give Sweetpaw the final assessment soon.

"What is this?" Wildwind asked, looking revolted. "Willowfeather, this squirrel is ridiculous! You must go out and catch, _what _you must be doing with Sweetpaw, I don't know, but I can certainly tell you need to improve your hunting skills before you improve hers."

Sweetpaw gave Wildwind a terrified look before dashing away.

"That was a squirrel _Sweetpaw _caught," Willowfeather said quietly as Wildwind began to look quite pleased with herself.

"Well, I think it's lovely," Dawnflower said pleasantly, dawn-like eyes glued on Willowfeather. Her gentle gaze was a nice change- usually there were just glares coming at Willowfeather.

Goldberry looked grudgingly at the squirrel. "I suppose it's _okay,_" She grunted. "I could catch better."

Willowfeather jumped up suddenly.

"If you're all finished ranting about food!" She cried. "Sweetpaw. Is. An. Apprentice. Beggars can't be choosers, we brought you a squirrel so _you will eat it._"

Willowfeather hadn't realized just how much the clan hated her until she was sent out on patrol with Sweetpaw and Mousetail.

Mousetail ignored them for most of the border patrol, but at the river near ShadowClan, he suddenly shoved Sweetpaw as she was setting a marker and the apprentice fell. Willowfeather lunged and caught Sweetpaw's pelt. The apprentice was in shock- Sweetpaw _couldn't _believe Mousetail had pushed, and she couldn't swim.

"How dare you," Willowfeather spluttered as they both got safely onto the bank. Trying to make anyone drown was awful, but a clan-mate? If Willowfeather or Sweetpaw told Shadestar, Mousetail would surely be out of the clan in a heartbeat, though Willowfeather doubted Shadestar would believe her.

"Sorry, your apprentice needed to be more careful. She just slipped, maybe she needs a better mentor." Mousetail looked stonily at Willowfeather.

"_Slipped_?" Willowfeather yowled. "You pushed her! How could you?"

Mousetail just glared.

Mousetail also alerted a plump vole Willowfeather had been tracking which would have been a worthy meal for all apprentices.

Willowfeather couldn't believe it. How could he? Purposefully hurting a clanmate was against the warrior code, and alerting prey that could have fully fed a cat? Clearly, everything was worse than she ever thought, and if she finally cracked and attacked some cat… surely, the only choice left for her would be exile.

**There's been a new development! Will Willowfeather actually be exiled, or will she stay, what do you think? And will she survive all the hate she is receiving from her clan-mates?**

**I hope you enjoyed this as well- see you (hopefully) next chapter!**


	4. At the Grave of Stoneshade

**At the Grave of Stoneshade**

**Another Chapter! (again…)**

**I've been toying with the idea of new fanfic with Nightcloud, Crowfeather, Breezepelt and a few others… tell me if you're interested? There would be a couple of OCs mixed with the real characters and it would probably be around the time of Onestar. Would you like to see it? If I did begin it, it would probably slow down my progress with this story (I wouldn't give it up, though) so I'm not entirely sure. I'm pretty excited about it but still, I don't know if I should do it.**

**I also realized my grammar/punctuation/sentence structure in the first chapter was… pretty awful. Sorry! I'll try to improve.**

Willowfeather still couldn't believe Mousetail's treachery. She hadn't told anyone, as Sweetpaw had said she was fine, but it had hurt the apprentice, and Willowfeather knew it.

She felt uncomfortable sleeping with cats who hated her so much, so she headed. Her legs carried her to a little clearing with little mounds of dirt and a memorial item. She walked to one at the very front, which had two memorials- a little rose bush growing on it and a large, smooth stone in front.

It was the grave of Stoneshade.

Willowfeather had grown the bush herself, before she had been mates with Sunheart. She had scattered seeds all over the grave, and to her surprise, a bush had grown. It was dull and brown now- except for a small, pink rose quite close to the top of the bush. Willowfeather didn't understand why the rose had grown- it was _leaf-bare-_ but she understood that Stoneshade was at the meadow of graves, somewhere.

"Hello, Stoneshade." Willowfeather whispered. "Memories of you are all I have now, now that Sunheart is gone and everyone hates me. I don't know why Sunheart is being so ridiculous, and I don't know what I did wrong. What did I do to deserve this, Stoneshade? Have I insulted StarClan, is this my punishment?"

Suddenly, she heard a rustle. Stoneshade?

Willowfeather hoped it wasn't any cats other than Stoneshade and that she was just imagining it.

"Stoneshade, how is StarClan?" She asked miserably, "I hope it's better than here, at least. I'm sorry you had to die so early. If you hadn't died, maybe I wouldn't have fallen in love with Sunheart at all and it would never have been so messy. I'm sorry for becoming mates with Sunheart so quickly after you died. I'm sorry once loyal clan-mates have gone off course and are trying to kill us-"

Suddenly, Willowfeather heard a gasp, and she whirled around. She saw a patch of light brown disappear back into the bushes, a familiar white-tipped tail whisk into shadow.

"Sunheart!" She breathed, not sure if she should be angry, sad or something else.

With a sigh, the bushes quivered and a slim, brown-furred cat with white splashes on the belly stepped out.

Sunheart.

"What- what are you _doing _here?" Willowfeather gasped.

Sunheart looked up at her defiantly from his bush.

"I saw you going out of the den, so I followed you. Darkshadow thinks I'm going night hunting. Do you have anything to say to me?" He looked at her coolly.

Willowfeather swelled up with anger. "Yes, I do," She said, barely managing to keep the bitterness from her voice. "I'd like to ask what _you _have to say to me."

Sunheart stepped back at the fury on her face. "Well, I thought you were using me to heal you, to stop you from being lonely," He began. "I knew I was second-best to Stoneshade from the start but I kept hoping things would change, that you would start loving me more. I thought they did, but then Stoneshade came and visited me, and I knew you hated me, I was just useful." His voice was uncertain.

"Isn't that what mates _do_?" Willowfeather lashed. "To comfort each other when times are difficult, to keep each other company, to encourage each other? I never thought you had a problem with me."

"I'm sorry-"

"Sunheart!" A new voice called, and Darkshadow limped into the clearing, anger etched on her face. She turned to Willowfeather. "I'm sorry, but he's _my _mate now," She meowed smoothly, face now emotionless. "Sunheart doesn't dwell on past relationships like you do. He doesn't need _your _comfort, _your _company, _your _encouragement. He's got _mine._"

Sunheart suddenly defiant. He looked at both of the angry she-cats.

"Exactly, Willowfeather," He spat. "I don't need you anymore, I don't love you. I thought we would work out, but we didn't. You gave me false hope but you were just using me."

"Could I talk to you, Sunheart?" Darkshadow said coldly, and whisked the tom away to the bushes.

Suddenly, a cold wind whipped up and a ghostly slate-coloured tom appeared, fur sparkling and his feet leaving paw prints full of shiny stardust.

"Stoneshade!" Willowfeather cried joyfully, but the StarClan cat had eyes full of ice and hatred. She stepped away from the tom nervously. "Don't tell me I've done something to upset you too-"

Stoneshade, fur still sparkling, ignored her and looked stonily at the bush Sunheart has disappeared into. Willowfeather felt the pain from Sunheart come back.

"Are you sure you're completely loyal to me?" Darkshadow's jealous voice echoed.

"Darkshadow, I can't believe you're jealous!" Sunheart's voice replied.

"Me, jealous? Get serious. You're my mate for Starclan's sake, I can't have you stolen away! You're _everything _to me!"

"Well, I couldn't just walk off on Willowfeather!"

They seemed to be having quite an argument.

"Darkshadow, Sunheart, stop _arguing_!" Willowfeather said finally, and the two cats slipped out of the bush.

They spotted Stoneshade looking icily at them and Darkshadow shrank back, but Sunheart stood, chest puffed up, gazing defiantly at the StarClan cat.

"I hated you when you were alive, because you were with Willowfeather," He spat. "I hate you because now you're dead and we need more warriors."

Stoneshade stared coldly at Sunheart, and Willowfeather immediately understood why he was so stiff. He was angry because his memory was not being honoured the way a warrior's should be, and he disliked how Sunheart had upset her so much, or at least she hoped. It felt lovely to know at least one of her former mates still cared for her. One had left and one was dead- perhaps she was just unlucky with love.

"One last chance, living one," He said gravely and Willowfeather noticed he was fading away. She looked up and saw it was dawn. It was time for Stoneshade to fade away once more until the next night.

**This chapter was almost 1000 words so pretty long in my standards (they're mostly around 600 words) so I'm pretty happy with it.**

**Did you like this chapter at the Meadow of Graves? If I get a review or two saying they liked it, I might add another chapter- currently, I don't have one planned, but I could always add one or tweak the ones I do have planned.**

**Thanks so much for reading my fourth chapter, and I hope to see you next time. Thank you for following me on my journey and I hope to see you much more!**


	5. Training Time

**I am back with a brand new chapter of 'Heart of the Willows' I hope you've been enjoying this story so far. It is very far from done but if you think I am rushing through the storyline, I'm sorry! The previous couple of chapters are important, but they weren't the **_**most **_**important. At this chapter, things will begin to get more interesting!**

"Hello, Whimpyfeather," Graypaw sneered at Willowfeather. Shadestar had decided that all the warrior apprentices should do battle training, and that unfortunately meant that Sweetpaw and Willowfeather had to train with Graypaw, one of Sunheart's biggest supporters, as well as _Darkshadow. _The pretty calico had done her best to insult and embarrass Willowfeather, whether it be making up the name 'Whimpyfeather' or consistently leaving her rose thorns and pebbles in her nest, no doubt a stab at Willowfeather's memory of Stoneshade.

Willowfeather determinedly ignored Graypaw's endless taunts. Graypaw was definitely different to his littermate. Sweetpaw was so well, sweet, and Graypaw was annoying and impulsive. Sweetpaw was a perfect apprentice, displaying the respect a younger cat should have for a warrior, but Graypaw? How had he even been allowed to become an apprentice?

"How about we go and hunt?" She suggested awkwardly to Darkshadow. The calico glared at her.

"Shadestar herself decided to train us in fighting. I have heard she plans to attack ShadowClan soon." She said coldly. "Besides, you would never catch anything, would you, Whimpyfeather?" Graypaw sniggered and cuffed Sweetpaw around the ears.

"You don't know the whole story," Graypaw growled. "And I'll _never _forgive you until you actually know the story, and trust me, if you know it all you'll _definitely _change your mind."

"Try me," Sweetpaw challenged. "Besides, it's _you _who doesn't know the whole story. Have you heard from Willowfeather? I'm not interested in Sunheart's little tale of woe."

Willowfeather was touched by Sweetpaw's loyalty.

"Well then," She said. "Are we going to train, or not? Sweetpaw here is almost ready to have her assessment, if we have to do battle moves I thought we could cover the more complicated moves today… what about the roll kick?"

Darkshadow frowned. "I planned to cover the crouch technique. It's good if they know that well. Why don't you just go off?"

Willowfeather froze. "Why?" She mewed snappishly. "Sweetpaw is _my _apprentice and I plan on overseeing her education. I don't want her to have to learn from just a few cats with the same thoughts- I think it's good that she is exposed to many diverse opinions and then she can decide which style suits her best, teach and benefit everyone."

Darkshadow rolled her eyes dramatically and turned away. "Right, claws unsheathed, you two," She snapped at Sweetpaw and Graypaw. "Let's see what you can do."

"_Claws unsheathed_?" Sweetpaw asked incredulously. She didn't argue further and got into a neat crouch.

Graypaw messily flopped to the ground.

"Great crouch," Darkshadow nodded to Graypaw, and he beamed. Willowfeather couldn't believe Darkshadow. _Great crouch_? His legs were splayed out, his back was arched awkwardly and all in all, it was the worst crouch Willowfeather had ever seen.

"Now, Sweetpaw, on the other hand, _you _clearly need some work. Tail down and legs closer to your body." Darkshadow snapped.

Sweetpaw frowned in concentration, and Willowfeather had to stop herself from screaming at Darkshadow. The well-trained apprentice was doing everything perfectly fine.

"You may start, _now_!" Darkshadow yowled.

Sweetpaw bunched up her muscles but allowed Graypaw to jump first. Sweetpaw was a small cat, not large at all, so Willowfeather had been taught to duck under bellies and try not to attack head-on, since she would almost certainly lose.

She smartly jumped up when Graypaw was flying over her head and her brother was sent sprawling.

Graypaw jumped up, hissing. Sweetpaw was thin and agile, Graypaw muscular and broad-shouldered. Graypaw was built for strength, Sweetpaw for speed.

Graypaw launched at her, and Sweetpaw perfected yet another move Willowfeather had advised her to do.

She darted away from Graypaw and ran to a nearby rock. Graypaw struggled to keep up and since the rock was quite big, he used up energy hauling himself up. Sweetpaw had been trained to jump and leap around, while Graypaw had clearly been taught to use his weight and haul opponents to the ground. That was not possible while the cat was above him or racing away, and Sweetpaw neatly gave him a quick slap on the nose before running away, Her claws were sheathed, so she produced no long-term damage but it left him stunned for a few moments. It was enough for Sweetpaw to make a running leap and launched herself onto Graypaw's back.

"Ha, I win!" She crowed gleefully.

Darkshadow scowled. "Your apprentice cheated." She growled to Willowfeather. "Let us try a brawl of strength."

Sweetpaw was left bleeding on the ground, the happy light gone from her eyes.

"How could you? How _could _you?" Willowfeather screamed to Graypaw, who was looking quite pleased with himself.

"Anything wrong here?" Kestrelwing's voice rang through the clearing, before his brown, white speckled body came into view. He spotted Sweetpaw, lying defenseless and bleeding on the ground.

"Oh, what happened? Sweetpaw?" He asked, cocking his head. His eyes were worried. "Darkshadow, go get some cobweb. Graypaw, soak a mossball from camp and then come back! Willowfeather, _explain. _Why didn't you defend her from whatever animal attacked her?"

"_Graypaw _attacked Sweetpaw!" Willowfeather exploded. She loudly explained the situation, making sure to clearly outline the fact that Darkshadow had been angry with Graypaw losing and had set up a battle so Graypaw would definitely win."

"Are you sure… you're not overreacting a little?" Kestrelwing asked awkwardly. "Sweetpaw will be fine, anyhow."

"_Overreacting_?" Willowfeather exploded. She was glad Sweetpaw would be okay, but Kestrelwing was being absolutely horrible.

She darted into the forest.

Willowfeather ran and ran until she was quite close to the ShadowClan border. She could tell she was near the ShadowClan border because the land was quite damp and swampy.

"Ugh," She grunted unhappily. "I _hate _swamps." She quietly made her way through the mushy dirt.

"_We need to launch the attack soon._" She heard. It was across the border, and she thought it belonged to the ShadowClan warrior, Poisonfang.

"I know, I know!" A female cat's voice replied. Willowfeather definitely knew it was a young warrior named Sleekpelt.

"Oakstar really wants to attack ThunderClan. We must go for it! I know that their deputy, Goldberry, is expecting kits, and therefore, their defences will be lowered. Recently, they lost Brightcloud and two of their apprentices, as well. They will be weaker than ever. When we have twice our current territory, we will be the most powerful clan in the forest! We cannot feed all our cats. Two have starved already. We must steal to survive."

"Yes, we must. We must wipe out all of the clans."

**Oh-oh! Most of this chapter was just the failed training session and describing how much Darkshadow hates Willowfeather, but there was a bit of a spoiler for what is coming up next… I hope you are enjoying! The next chapter will be up either later today, tomorrow or the day after tomorrow. By the time you're reading this, I'll probably have started writing it already (I'm very enthusiastic about this).**

**I have also begun work on my WindClan fanfic! I don't actually know if I'll **_**publish **_**it, but I've started writing it. If it comes out the way I want it to, I guess I'll publish it, but I also really would like to continue work on this one. Do you think I can manage it?**

**Thanks for reading all this way!**


	6. A series of events

**Hello everyone! I am back with a brand new chapter!**

**Before I get into the chapter, I'd like to thank Honeymoon01 for following the story!**

**Well, let's just get into Chapter Six. I hope you enjoy it!**

Willowfeather let out a quiet gasp of dismay. She managed to stop herself before she made a loud enough noise to alert Sleekpelt and Poisonfang, and listened eagerly. If she heard enough, she would be able to report back to ThunderClan and alert everyone!

"After ThunderClan, who are we attacking next?" Sleekpelt's eager voice rang loud and clear.

"RiverClan, I expect. They are a much stronger than WindClan. WindClan may be fast and speedy, but they do not have the brute force of RiverClan. They are quite well muscled from all that swimming."

Willowfeather nodded smartly. _Planning an attack on ThunderClan, they will try RiverClan next. They want to wipe out all the clans, _she thought. That wasn't quite enough to go running back to the clan just yet, though, when Sleekpelt burst out with some crucial information.

"We're attacking the day after the next gathering, aren't we? And how many cats are we taking to the attack?"

Willowfeather suddenly remembered Poisonfang was clan deputy of ShadowClan. He must have been filling Sleekpelt in so that they could prepare.

"Yes, we are. And we are taking as many cats as possible. ThunderClan is quite small at the moment, though they are quite fierce fighters-" - _we most certainly are, _Willowfeather thought- "still, they don't match us in number or courage. They only have seven warriors, eight by the time we attack because Wildwind will be out of the nursery by then, and two apprentices, though it'll change to three because Wildwind's kit will be an apprentice by then. Still, he'll be easy to defeat, he's not going to have been an apprentice for that long."

Willowfeather recited the information in her head. _Attack on ThunderClan. Next is RiverClan. Wipe out the clans. Day after the next gathering. As many cats as possible attacking. They have plenty of information about us. _She darted away, careful not to make a noise. As she ran, an unwelcome thought entered her head.

What if no one listened? She was already hated in the clan. She would seem like a liar.

"Sweetpaw?" Willowfeather crept into the medicine den. She quietly apologized to Sweetpaw for running off and explained everything she had heard.

"_What_?" Sweetpaw's mouth hung open. It was night, so she had missed out on a whole day of training. "What am I doing in the medicine den? The clan can't afford to have _any _cat lying around being unhelpful like I am. ShadowClan is going to attack full force! It's fight or die, if you're right about this. I know Finchkit, you know, Wildwind's kit, disagrees with his mother, and if Snowcloud gets him as his apprentice, he'll believe us. I think Ambereye will, too. Please, let StarClan give him to one of them! They'll train him well and he'll be as prepared as possible."

Willowfeather shook her head. "Rest," She murmured. "You need to be healthy during the battle with ShadowClan."

Suddenly, a painful screech cut into the peaceful night. It came from the nursery, and Kestrelwing stood up in his nest.

"Goldberry must be kitting!" He said wildly. Willowfeather was honestly quite impressed- she was _never _quite awake after she had just woken up.

"Oh, _great._" She scowled once he left. "Not only do we have a weak apprentice for the fight with ShadowClan, we also have _more _kits to defend."

Sweetpaw was usually quite optimistic, but her face was grim.

"I'll be fine in a day or two, Kestrelwing says," She mewed instead of the bright comment as usual. "After that, _please, _I know you prefer hunting but teach me every battle move you know, give me strength exercises and let's train every moment of the day we can. I'll do tree climbing, because being able to drop down on opponents is useful…"

An age later, together they hurried out to see how Goldberry's kitting had gone. The deputy had been screaming in agony for the whole night, disturbing their plans for their training. In two days, Sweetpaw and Willowfeather would begin their intense training. They would wake up before dawn and practice leaps and jumps. They would train until sunrise and be sent their way on the patrols unless they were free, in which case they would have mock fights in the camp. At sun-high, when all cats were in camp, they would slip out to do tree-training, and they would train until Goldberry called them for after sun-high patrols. If they were not on patrol, they would practice defensive moves. After the last patrols had gone out, they would go out to do attack moves until the moon was up completely, and then they would go to their nests. Every third day, they would allow themselves a nap to refill on energy- they would end up getting only four hours of sleep a night, so they needed the naps.

"Two kits!" Snowcloud announced, his blue eyes shining. "A pale gold she-kit with soft white spots like Goldberry, and then a white tom with golden paws, tail-tip and nose. They're beautiful!"

After the news, Willowfeather wobbled to her nest. She needed to sleep the last few hours that were left of the night. It had certainly been eventful, and she was tired.

**This is basically a filler chapter, sorry it was kind of boring! The start was okay, I reckon, and I needed a chapter where Goldberry gave birth, so I just squished all those events into one chapter. I won't give any spoilers for the next chapter, but it **_**will **_**be slightly more interesting, I hope!**

**Thanks so much for reading! Hopefully, I'll see you again soon!**


	7. No time to fear a kit

**Fear of a Kit**

**I am back with a brand new chapter!**

**Firstly, though, I would love to thank Ivystorm and a Guest for reviewing! Sorry I didn't see the reviews before. Just to answer your questions, I am definitely continuing this story because I love writing it! I've got some plot twists planned that might shock you, though…**

**Anyway, let's get into it…**

"Come in, Willowfeather!" Goldberry called cheerfully. She sounded tired, but happy. It was the day after she had kitted, and Snowcloud had just informed Willowfeather that Goldberry wanted to see her. Willowfeather imagined Wildwind's angry face when she padded in.

Sure enough, Wildwind scowled so much it barely it fit on her face. "What's Whimpyfeather doing here?" She demanded to Dawnflower and Goldberry.

"_I _invited her, Wildwind," Goldberry mewed welcomingly to Willowfeather. "Be kind to our guests, wouldn't you? Well, Willowfeather, come and look at my kits!"

They were exactly as Snowcloud had described. The tom had a snowy white pelt, almost exactly the same as his father's, but his legs, nose and tail-tip faded to pale gold. The she-kit was the pale gold of her mother with white spots as if snowflakes fell on her.

"They're so cute!" Willowfeather gasped, when the tom woke and looked straight at her. His eyes were still closed, but he seemed to be looking up at her with interest.

"I'm very tired," Goldberry told her, "But they're all worth it. I would love to get back to deputy duties soon, but I'm stuck in here for _six months._"

Willowfeather purred, but she felt a twinge of fear. The tom simply scared her.

_Do not fear the little one, _Willowfeather heard. It was in the soft, motherly and familiar voice of Brightcloud. _He will bring glory and safety to his clan, but he will face hardships. You must protect him, Willowfeather._

Willowfeather sat up straight. It wasn't exactly a _prophecy, _but it was a message from StarClan. From her sister. She looked around, and saw a faint outline of a thin but strong cat, a grey with soft dapples. It was Brightcloud. She was purring and looking at the two kits.

"What are their names?" Willowfeather asked, trying to push back her irrational fear of the tom-kit.

"Flamekit," Goldberry said easily, flicking her tail at the tom.

"_Flamekit_? Why?" Willowfeather asked, before a memory came to her, from when she was a new apprentice, only four seasons ago.

"_Fire! Fire!" Goldpaw yowled in a panicked voice. "Windpaw- Windpaw was caught in the fire, Littlespot, come! Please, save him!" _

_Goldpaw's mentor, Ambereye, raced in with a small brown tabby in her jaws. _

"_It's too late, Goldpaw," She said softly, looking at her apprentice. "He's gone. He shouldn't have been messing with that fire. We must get the rest of the clan out of the forest now!"_

Littlespot had been the medicine cat at the time.

"Oh," Willowfeather whispered. "I'm sorry, Goldberry. I should have realized."

"It's alright, Willowfeather. I haven't thought of a name for the other kit yet. Snowcloud wants to name her."

Willowfeather fled through the forest. Running always helped her think, and she really wanted to just get away from the clan. Goldberry was so kind, of course, Snowcloud so brave, and Willowfeather had no reason to think Flamekit would be different, but the kit simply _terrified _her. It confused her, and she trusted Brightcloud, so she really should try to like Flamekit. _He has the heart of a wanderer. _Willowfeather thought. Somehow, she knew Flamekit would wander before coming back to bring glory and safety to his clan, as Brightcloud insisted.

_Glory and safety. _Willowfeather thought sadly. _I don't have either. _

She wished Sunheart was still with her, that she had never heard Poisonfang and Sleekpelt's conversation, that her clan still liked her. She wished everything was how they used to be.

It was the first day of training, and it was still quite dark.

They padded into the forest, Sweetpaw chattering anxiously.

"Do you think we will be ready?" She whimpered as she stretched out her legs. They would be doing exercises that would be hard on the legs, so they had to be warmed up.

"I don't know," Willowfeather admitted as she dropped into a hunter's crouch. "All we can do is prepare, so that even if everyone else is not ready, we can do our best to protect them. What do you think of my crouch? It's important to have tha basics perfect."

Sweetpaw studied Willowfeather. "I think your legs are tucked in nicely," She said. "But you're putting too much weight in your front legs. You won't be able to propel yourself as far forward."

Willowfeather made the corrections and straightened up. "Well," she said crisply. "Let's get to work.

By the time it was almost light, they had covered the basics and Sweetpaw had almost gotten the hang of a tricky little jump for when she was fighting more than one cat. She leaped at one, and, because she was so small and agile, she could twist and attack the other instead.

"Good one! Now, that pile of moss is the first cat, and the large brown leaf is the second." Willowfeather instructed. "It'll be better if we had moving animals, they're harder to fight, but the theory is all we have."

Sweetpaw suddenly launched herself at the leaf. It was a lovely leap, neat and perfectly aimed, and she was already coming down when she suddenly turned and steered herself at a patch of moss. It was unexpected and perfectly pulled off- any ShadowClan cat, especially an apprentice, would never have seen it coming.

"Yes, yes!" Willowfeather said happily. "Now, it's almost dawn. Let's have a mock fight, _jumps only, _and after this, we'll go and perform our duties."

Suddenly, just as she finished, Willowfeather launched herself violently at her apprentice, and Sweetpaw only just ducked out in time. Sweetpaw waited until Willowfeather had landed, before speedily darting in front of her mentor and lifted onto her back feet, hitting Willowfeather on the chest. Willowfeather snarled and jumped at Sweetpaw. She landed on top and smiled.

"Give up?"

"What were you doing?" Goldberry frowned when they padded in slightly late.

"Sorry," Willowfeather replied. "We were doing early battle training."

Goldberry cocked her head suspiciously. "_Why _would you be doing that?" She asked.

The cogs in Willowfeather's head turned quickly. Goldberry surely wouldn't believe her if she said ShadowClan would attack. "I want to give Sweetpaw her assessment soon," She answered quickly. "I felt the need to give her some pointers." She thought for another moment, wondering if she needed to elaborate. _Probably. _"I haven't asked yet, but I just really want her to pass the test…" She mumbled lamely.

"Well, aren't you an enthusiastic mentor!" Goldberry smiled kindly. "I'd like you to lead a patrol. Sweetpaw will come with you, of course, and Dustfoot will go with you. The camp will be nearly empty, actually, and I have a bad feeling… could you stay until another patrol comes back?"

Willowfeather nodded, relieved to not be in trouble.

A while after the last patrol had left, it was only Willowfeather, Sweetpaw, Dustfoot, Goldberry, Wildwind, Dawnflower and the kits left. Willowfeather settled back, watching Sweetpaw swipe at an imaginary enemy, trying to perfect a defensive move.

It was bright and sunny, with no wind and it was so hot Willowfeather was in the shade of a bush that had once served as nursery before it had become crowded and an empty log had replaced it. Willowfeather felt like dozing off. It was so hot and she was so sweaty…

"_Shadowclan, attack_!"

**Sorry I haven't updated in ages! Well, why do you think ShadowClan came early?**

**I will try to update two times a week. Anyway, I have been toying with the idea of multiple different fanfics, do you think I would be able to balance them (two updates for this one and one update for the other a week, for example)? Also, please review with your thoughts on the storyline!**

**Feel free to take character names and personalities but not the storyline and please credit me if you do! **

**Thanks for reading, it means so much to me. See you next chapter!**


	8. The Battle with ShadowClan

**Hello!**

**I was originally working on the WindClan fanfic I mentioned in earlier chapters, but not one, not two but three brand new ideas have come to hit me in the face. I am definitely going to start a new fanfic now, just because I don't want my favourite idea to go to waste, and I will be updating that one whenever I can, because this story is still going to be my top priority. That fanfic may come out later this weekend if I think the first chapter is good enough, if not, it will be out next week. I still want to get all the updates for this story done first!**

**Well, let's get into it!**

Willowfeather was stunned. Too many ShadowClan warriors to count flooded into the camp, yowling viciously and trampling everything they could.

"The camp is vulnerable!" She mewed quickly to Dustfoot, who had hurried over, apparently having forgotten his hate of Willowfeather. "Especially the queens! Please, lead them to safety… and then bring back as many patrols as you can." Dustfoot nodded tensely and dove into the nursery.

Goldberry dashed out. "I'm not leaving," She murmured to Willowfeather. "My clan is in danger." She continued her sentence, but Willowfeather didn't hear as a sleek, brown-pelted she-cat dove at her.

"Do you know why we're early?" Sleekpelt sneered. "I smelt you, so we decided to come early so your clan would be even less prepared."

Panic flashed in Willowfeather's belly as she caught a glance of Sweetpaw. The pale brown apprentice was lashing out at two apprentices and a warrior defensively. Still, Sweetpaw was clearly much better trained than the two apprentices and equal to the warrior, so she was not losing as badly as some would think. Willowfeather cleared her mind and suddenly bit Sleekpelt's leg as it lashed out to deliver a blow. The ShadowClan cat let out a little _eek _and stepped away, paw bloody. Cats swarmed around Goldberry, and Willowfeather jumped into the fray, dragging two cats away from the deputy. One was a badly injured Poisonfang and the other was a clearly experienced, broad shouldered warrior. Silently cursing the terrible luck she had (why couldn't she have pulled out two easier warriors?) she launched herself smoothly at Poisonfang. She leaped on and bit him hard at the same time as slapping him, claws unsheathed, in areas that would stun him. His legs buckled, and she launched at the strong, bulky warrior next. He was harder to fight, and she was slammed to the floor by his strong paws. With a hiss, she leaped up defiantly, and looked up just in time to see Sweetpaw leap elegantly over the warrior. The warrior Sweetpaw had been fighting followed suit, but the two apprentices were slower and knocked the warrior down.

"How _dare _you!" The warrior thundered crankily, and Willowfeather slipped away to haul another cat off Goldberry. She caught a glance at the deputy and she saw that Goldberry was staring in shock at a dead, sorrel coloured cat.

"No time to think of that!" Willowfeather yowled as she took a lithe, shadowy grey she-cat off the pile. She recognized the grey as Bluebird, which was, in Willowfeather's opinion, a ridiculous name. Willowfeather took a swipe and her paw hit the mark. With a thud, Bluebird was sent sprawling by the force of the powerful blow. The grey she-cat sprang up and ran off with a terrified look in her eyes. ShadowClan cats weren't trained to run, they were trained to be stealthy, so Willowfeather kept up easily, passing Sunheart and Ambereye hunting together.

"ShadowClan attack on camp!" She gasped as she ran by, Bluebird sprinting fast as her legs would allow ahead of her.

Willowfeather saw the two cats abandon the thrush they had been tracking and head to camp, sprinting as hard as Willowfeather.

She screeched to a stop on the border.

"Don't come back!" She spat angrily at Bluebird who seemed a lot braver now she was back in her own territory.

"ShadowClan isn't scared so easily," Bluebird said, contradicting herself with the look of terror on her face. Her whole body was trembling.

Satisfied with the scared look, Willowfeather bunched up her muscles and ran back to camp, eyes peeled for any more clan members.

Disaster lay in the camp. Fresh-kill and injured cats were scattered all around camp, and the sound of screeching and clawing at pelts drowned out everything else. The medicine den was flattened to the ground by Sunheart, Sweetpaw and the warrior as well as apprentices. Clearly, Sweetpaw had been overwhelmed sometime and Sunheart had gone to rescue her. The pile on top of Goldberry had disappeared, the cats distracted by Ambereye and the return of Dustfoot.

"Shadestar protecting queens. I came back as fast as I could- I think Snowcloud and Mousetail are on their way." He gasped and Willowfeather nearly slid down in relief knowing more cats were on the way. ThunderClan was outnumbered one cat to _three. _There was no way they could win without backup. Darkshadow had joined the fray at one point and was struggling with four snarling toms including Poisonfang. Despite hating Darkshadow, Willowfeather couldn't leave her limping clanmate to die and pounced on Poisonfang. He staggered. The ShadowClan deputy was already badly injured and easy to take down. As she dug her claws into his back and pummelled his shoulders, she lashed her teeth out to another snarling tom. Darkshadow threw her a grateful look before turning, her bad leg flailing uselessly. Willowfeather kicked off Poisonfang and gracefully landed right in front of the other tom, clawing his muzzle as he screamed in pain. Poisonfang was deputy for a reason and quickly recovered, biting down hard on Willowfeather's tail, and she couldn't shake him off. She kicked out, her hind leg hitting him squarely in the chest, and stood up, proud smile on her face as her opponents ran into the forest.

"_ShadowClan, retreat_!" Poisonfang yelled, just before he disappeared out of view.

She smiled in satisfaction, but the smirk was quickly wiped off her muzzle when she saw a limp, bloody body with a gold pelt and soft white spots.

Goldberry.

**Goldberry isn't quite dead yet… or is she?**

**Thanks so much for reading this far! I hope you enjoyed this battle scene (Hopefully, it wasn't too bloody!) and I really hope to see you next chapter, which will be released sometime next week. :)**


	9. The new deputy

**I'm back with **_**Heart of the Willows, **_**everyone!**

**I hope you've been enjoying the story as much as I have been enjoying writing it. Woohoo, we're almost at 10,000 words, I think we'll get to it with just this chapter.**

**Last time, Goldberry, clan deputy, was killed or badly injured… well, let's just get into it and find out what happened!**

Goldberry was unconscious and had her claws wrapped around the dead, sorrel warrior Willowfeather had seen. The deputy was still alive, but only just.

"StarClan help us," Kestrelwing murmured, hurrying over. "The herb stock is all gone. _Gone, _completely gone. Nothing left. Shadestar is returning with the queens but there's no nursery to come back to. I have cobweb, so I'll wrap Goldberry up and then have all the warriors line up for inspection…"

Willowfeather joined the line. Her tail was aching, an ear had been scratched and a shallow cut on her flank was still pumping blood, but she was less banged up then Darkshadow or Sweetpaw, and certainly much better than poor Goldberry. _She has kits to look after, _Willowfeather thought. _Please let her survive._

Kestrelwing was now inspecting Sunheart after sending Mousetail and Darkshadow off to rest.

"I suppose you're better than the others," Kestrelwing said grudgingly. "You could look out for cobweb, I suppose. Who will build up the dens? Everybody is too weak and needs to rest, but nobody can rest until there are dens. I would help, but I need to heal everyone. Oh, this _is _a terrible situation! ShadowClan has probably defeated us all."

Willowfeather's eyes shot to Kestrelwing. "Don't give up!" She blurted. "I'm fine, I'll go out and hunt for everyone while you look for herbs and Sunheart can build. Spottedpaw is certainly good enough to care for us. Quick smart, did I stutter!" She mewed crossly. She didn't like it when cats gave up too early. There was still hope. She gave her flank injury a quick lick, passed a paw over her ear and got up. "Anyone else coming with me to hunt?" She challenged.

"I will." Ambereye volunteered. She had several snagged claws and a swollen eye.

"Fine." Kestrelwing grunted. "But the moment _either _of you start feeling stressed or tired, you come straight back. Sunheart, you can come with me to look for herbs. Spottedpaw, you're in charge until Shadestar comes back. Make everyone rest and check on everyone regularly."

"Sparrow!" Willowfeather said eagerly. They had been hunting for a while, but Ambereye could barely see and had missed a pounce entirely, and her mouse had scuttled away until Willowfeather lunged for it, but her leg gave away and she fell short. Next, Willowfeather had thought she had heard a squirrel- squirrels always provided good meals- but her cursed ear wasn't good enough to pick up exactly where the prey was. Finally, Ambereye had caught a vole, but it wasn't enough for all of their injured classmates.

After a messy jump, Willowfeather just managed to bring down the lovely bird and after a minute of battling, finally managed to kill it.

"Well," She gasped. "My flank is _really _hurting. Do you think this is enough?" Willowfeather already knew it was a miserable load they were taking back, but they had no choice. They were simply too injured to hunt. They had already managed to fail to catch two pieces of prey- that was punishment.

"What terrible luck," Ambereye groaned, pressing a paw to her swollen eye. "Can we stop by at the Medicine Pool? I want to get wet moss for my eye."

The Medicine Pool was a little pool of water behind the former Medicine Den that the medicine cats used to wash things. They always had piles of moss, so Ambereye quickly wet a bundle of moss and pressed it to her eye with a sigh of relief. Already, the swelling around her bloody eye was starting to go down. Willowfeather dipped her tail into the pool to wash it, since she loved her beautiful grey tail and she had no intention of keeping dried blood, like a disgusting ring of copper, on the beautiful plumy tail. Her flank had finally stopped bleeding, to her relief. She had lost blood, but she could still go on.

Goldberry was dead.

Snowcloud was still sobbing into his mate's fur, many cats stared blankly into space and Shadestar paced uncomfortably.

"We need a new deputy," She said finally. "But we have so few cats who have had apprentices. There's only Ambereye left, and she has clearly expressed her wish not to be deputy. So I must turn to warriors who currently have apprentices."

Despite the loss, Willowfeather's heart rose with hope. She had always wanted to be deputy- but surely, Shadestar would choose Darkshadow? The she-cat was tough, popular and had gone through a rough time. Her leg was practically a trophy.

Darkshadow had stood proudly, smiling.

"So I would like to ask if Willowfeather would take the role of deputy."

Darkshadow stayed there, her face shocked and angry.

"Why _me_?" Willowfeather blurted out.

Shadestar turned to look at her calmly. "To put things simply, you put the clan before yourself, Willowfeather," She explained. "Though your flank was still bleeding, you volunteered to go and hunt. You have been through thick and thin, and the clan appreciates you for it."

That wasn't true. Snowcloud had looked up and smiled weakly, while Ambereye nodded approvingly, but that was all the support.

"I'll try my hardest, Shadestar," Willowfeather said bravely, ignoring all the stony faces.

A day later, Shadestar approached her.

"I have a truth to tell you, Willowfeather," She said quietly to the new deputy.

"I am on my second last life, and StarClan tells me neither will last long." Shadestar confessed. "_That _is why I chose you. I sensed Darkshadow would have made a better _deputy- _but I saw true leadership in your eyes, and I knew you would be the better and fairer leader. That is important, Willowfeather. Darkshadow is loyal, but she would have made every river flood with the blood of enemies, exiled many who did not deserve to be. You will not."

Willowfeather just stared. "But I _can't _be leader!" She burst out, voice full of shock. "I'm not ready. And I'm a _disgrace _in this clan." She couldn't believe what Shadestar had said.

"You will _have _to be ready."

**Well, that was a dramatic chapter! Willowfeather was just made deputy- and that is something crucial in the plot. Also, I just killed off Goldberry… sorry, I had to. **

**Anyway, thank you so much for reading! I hope you weren't too offended by this chapter, I hope to see you in the next chapter!**


	10. Sweetpaw's Assessment

**I am back once again! I am trying to be quick updating this because I have other fanfics that need work.**

**Anyway, new chapter of **_**Heart of the Willows, **_**I hope you enjoy it!**

It was Willowfeather's first gathering as deputy. The clan was still in pieces, but a bright and young new deputy had given Snowcloud and Ambereye some consolation, and Willowfeather had worked hard to keep the clan together. Shadestar went out on border patrol everyday, and one of them always stayed in camp, discussing with the medicine cats about who was healthy enough to return to duties, what herbs were needed most… Willowfeather was busier than she had ever been in her life, but she finally felt as though she had a purpose in life. Her clan desperately needed a strong and capable deputy who was completely loyal and invested in the clan, who would always put the clan's needs before their own, and would never stray from their duty to the clan. Willowfeather could be that deputy. She _had _to be.

They arrived at the gathering place, where ShadowClan and WindClan were already gathered and chatting.

Willowfeather saw, to her satisfaction, that many ShadowClan warriors had scratches on flanks, missing claws, nicked ears and twisted paws. She shot a smug look to Poisonfang, who was looking in shock at her standing underneath the great tree. Willowfeather got up and turned to Sweetpaw.

"Let's go and find you some apprentices to talk to, Frogpaw and Sandpaw don't seem to be here yet." She said. Frogpaw and Sandpaw were RiverClan apprentices Sweetpaw usually talked with, but they weren't there. A WindClan warrior came up to Willowfeather as she spoke with a tiny brown and white apprentice.

"Hello," The WindClan she-cat meowed with a smile. "I'm Waterwish. This is my new apprentice, Rowanpaw." the apprentice was small, but he was a strong little tom who looked quite fast. Waterwish puffed up her chest. Probably, Waterwish was a new warrior and he was her first apprentice.

"Congratulations," Willowfeather purred. "This is mine, Sweetpaw. She's almost ready for her assessment, but because I just became deputy I haven't had time to train her up properly and give her the assessment-"

"You're _deputy_?" Waterwish asked, eyes wide with awe. "You must be such a good warrior! I only became a warrior two seasons ago, but you must have been a warrior for such a long time!"

"Not really," Willowfeather confessed. "I became a warrior at the same time as you, I think. And Sweetpaw is my first apprentice, but I got the job of deputy anyway."

Waterwish stood back to look admiringly at Willowfeather's form. "You look fast," She noticed. "You wouldn't do badly in WindClan."

Willowfeather was embarrassed by such admiration. She was rescued by Oakstar, leader of ShadowClan, calling the gathering. Willowfeather hurried to her spot beneath the tree, under Shadestar.

"I will begin." Shadestar announced. "ThunderClan was attacked by ShadowClan last moon." She threw Oakstar a filthy look. "Our deputy, Goldberry, was killed." Gasps rose up from everyone.

"We have a new deputy, Willowfeather," She continued. "But our clan was shaken. We are back on our feet, but ShadowClan's evil is not forgiven."

Shadestar had lied. They were _certainly _not back on their feet. It was still only Ambereye, Sunheart and Willowfeather who had permission from Kestrelwing to go out and hunt, and Willowfeather knew Snowcloud wanted to retire to the elder's den- it was just that Snowcloud firmly believed he needed to provide more for his clan. Willowfeather disagreed- Snowcloud was not an old warrior, he had only served for four seasons, while many elders served for at least fifteen (nearly four years, compared to Snowcloud's one year) but he had been brave, strong and he well deserved retirement. Still, Willowfeather knew the most senior warrior wished to at least watch his kits until apprenticeship. Lilykit had been named because everyone knew Goldberry had loved lilies, and she was just as calm, controlled and wise yet brave as Goldberry had been before her. Flamekit, on the other hand, was wild and unpredictable. Willowfeather still feared the little tom. He seemed to glare at her all the time.

_Is it because I'm deputy_? Willowfeather wondered one day. Perhaps Flamekit wanted to be deputy and saw Willowfeather as a poor example. Or maybe he thought she had stolen Goldberry's position as the faithful deputy.

Suddenly, she shook her head. Sweetpaw's assessment was later in the day, and Willowfeather had to plan it. Shadestar had unpredictably decided that the current assessment wasn't stern enough, and since their mentors knew the apprentices best, she had announced that the mentor and deputy together would go through making a plan that would test the apprentice to the best of their ability. Since Willowfeather was both deputy and Sweetpaw's mentor, she would be making up the assessment herself.

"Maybe I'll designate her a place that is difficult to hunt at, and then she had to catch at least two pieces of prey to pass the hunt assessment. Then she has to climb up the highest tree on ThunderClan territory for the climbing part, and then I'll climb up after her and she has to report what she can see to me for the sight bit of the assignment. Finally, I'll get probably Ambereye to fight her and if she can draw with Ambereye, she passes the fighting assessment." Willowfeather nodded confidently. Something Sweetpaw had trouble with was fighting another small cat, since she had practised fighting bigger cats so much. Ambereye was a senior warrior _and _she was small, so she would be a challenge for the apprentice.

Willowfeather watched Sweetpaw stalking a mouse in 'Dead Meadow'. It was called that because there was rarely any prey- but rabbits, mice and birds had all noticed cats usually didn't hunt there, and it was now a hunter's paradise, or as much of a paradise it could be in leaf-bare. Sweetpaw had already caught a lovely finch and a rabbit, and was out doing herself with the mouse.

Sweetpaw pounced and the mouse was dead before it realized.

"Well done!" Willowfeather bounded out of the bush. "You definitely passed the hunting assessment. Now, we need to go to the highest tree."

Willowfeather beamed proudly. Sweetpaw had breezed through her assessment, and was having the warrior ceremony the next day. Willowfeather hoped that would take the stress off Snowcloud's shoulders- if there was a new warrior, Snowcloud would feel he would be able to retire guiltlessly to the elder's den.

**Sweetpaw finally passed her assessment! I have two options for her name- Sweetwater or Sweetbreeze. Which name do you think suits the almost warrior better? Please tell me, I'm torn! **

**Anyway, thank you so much for reading this chapter and I hope to see you in the next one. I'm really happy with how this story is going, please tell me how **_**you **_**like it!**


	11. A little discussion

**Okay, okay. I know I promised to not update until I got opinions, but I changed my mind… what do you think Sweetpaw's name will be?**

Willowfeather puffed up her chest. Sweetpaw had just taken her vows and Shadestar was now looking at her with pride, thinking of just the right name.

"Sweetpaw," She said finally, eyes bright. "Your mother was named Silentbreeze. In memory of your brave, brave mother, your name will be Sweetbreeze. If you have half of your mother's courage, selflessness and sense of duty, you will surely be one of the best warriors in the clan. The clan honours your honesty, courage and kindness, and we all welcome you as a full member of our clan."

Sweetbreeze's amber eyes glittered with pride, when Sunheart stood to speak, his whole body trembling with emotion. Willowfeather turned to watch her former mate walk to Shadestar.

"Please, Shadestar," He whispered. "Listen. Darkshadow, Redkit and Leafkit are _gone. _They're missing. Darkshadow didn't even tell me she would go hunting, and she has been gone too long to make dirt."

Shadestar stood, stunned. "Well," She said finally. "We really don't have the warriors to be sending out a search party, but I suppose Willowfeather will sort that out. I am going to go and patrol the ShadowClan border, ask Willowfeather about patrols."

Sunheart turned pleadingly to Willowfeather. "I know I was horrible to you," He said in a desperate voice. "But you _can't _leave Darkshadow out to die. Redkit and Leafkit are gone too. _Please, _send out a patrol."

Willowfeather looked grudgingly at the tom. "This isn't for you," She whispered painfully, eyes glittering with hurt. "But I won't condemn helpless kits and warriors to die. Ambereye and Snowcloud, you can go and look for them. Start by the WindClan border and slowly move to the ShadowClan side."

Sunheart looked at her with relief, but Willowfeather had never hated the tom more. Sunheart truly _had _given up on her- and he had given his heart to Darkshadow.

"You can go hunting with Graypaw." She said snappishly, overcome with emotion. "I'm going with Sweetbreeze, Mousetail and Dustfoot to hunt."

"Graypaw disappeared." Sunheart said flatly. Sunheart had requested specially to share prey with Willowfeather, and despite her current hate of Sunheart, she had accepted.

"You have no idea what it's like to be me, Willowfeather." Sunheart's voice was rising with desperation. "I'm slowly losing everyone and everything I have."

"Oh, _don't I know_?" Willowfeather asked, voice cold and icy. Her blue eyes met Sunheart's amber. "What do you think I felt when you _ditched _me? Do you really think I was 'oh, I guess it's all alright'? You have _no idea _what I went through, Sunheart. Now, you're coming to me asking for me to help Darkshadow, when it's her fault I'm so unpopular and the clan is basically failing. The truth is, I really want to forgive you, Sunheart, because that's what someone who _truly loves _another cat does, but I can't find it in myself to do so, after such a betrayal. I never used you, I never betrayed you. Yes, I was upset when Stoneshade died! Isn't that _natural_? If Darkshadow died right now, would you be a little bit upset? Of course you would! If I died, you'd probably throw a party because I did what you would do yourself. You need to use your common sense, Sunheart, especially now that I'm deputy and I _can _actually make you clean ticks off other warriors for the next six moons."

Sunheart shuffled away from her in shock. "You wouldn't," He gasped. "But you could have _talked _to me! I would have forgiven you and we would be back to what we used to be, and-"

"_You weren't there to listen!_" Willowfeather wailed. "Besides, you wouldn't forgive me. Forgive me, now. And mean it."

Sunheart glared at her coldly. "Cats have to _earn _my loyalty," He spat.

"Exactly."

**Shorter chapter, this time, but many important things have happened! This is where it begins to really delve into the plot. Things will begin happening, and we get to the meat of the matter… but it will take like fifty chapters (not kidding there) to actually start getting to the ending bit, so this story will be veeeery long, if it goes the way I want it to. The disappearances are not the only problem (the problems with ShadowClan have already been revealed, and that's only the beginning…) and if you review, it will make the chapters come faster, so **_**please **_**review and **_**give me your opinions**_**! I really want to know what I'm doing well and what I could improve on. Also, tenth person to review gets to make up a warrior name for one of the following kits-**

**Finchkit (light grey and white patched tom, Wildwind and Dustfoot's kit)**

**Leafkit (Dawnflower and a dead tom's kit, red-brown she-kit)**

**Cinderkit (cream she-kit, sibling to Leafkit)**

**Redkit (red-brown tom, sibling of Leafkit and Cinderkit)**

**Lilykit (Goldberry and Snowcloud's kit, pale gold with spots that look like snowflakes)**

**Flamekit (the one Willowfeather is scared of!)**

**You actually have to have a username though (guests cannot make up the names) that is the one rule.**

**Anyway, thank you **_**so much **_**for reading this far into my story, it means so much to me (also, who is your favourite character out of this story?).**


	12. The Caves

**Hello everybody!**

**Thank you so, so much for all of your kind words of encouragement- I would have given up on this had I not seen your kind reviews!**

**I hope I'm back but updates might be a bit wonky because school has started back up with more homework than ever. I really hope I can keep this story up (and I still have ideas for the WindClan fanfic…). Anyway, let's get into this chapter!**

"So who is missing?" Shadestar asked frantically.

"Let me think," Willowfeather paused, and Ambereye choked back a yowl. The meeting was for senior warriors only but considering Snowcloud was gone as well, there were only three cats.

"Snowcloud, obviously," Willowfeather began. "Cinderkit disappeared this morning, and now Dawnflower has fallen apart since Redkit and Leafkit are gone too. Graypaw is also missing, and Darkshadow. We're losing so many."

Shadestar gaped at Willowfeather. "So six cats are missing?" She meowed worriedly. "Really?"

"Yes, really," Willowfeather snapped, losing patience. She really shouldn't be getting angry at her leader, but the stress of being deputy while cats disappeared from the clan was too much. "I'm sorry, Shadestar. But I'm not used to this much responsibility."

Her words didn't come out properly, but she needed to get such stress off her shoulders, and also look properly. She couldn't leave her clan while she was deputy but if she was just a warrior, she could go on more patrols.

"I- I would… I would like to give up my role of deputy," She managed. "I'm sorry. I think my skills can be better used for searching, and I can't do that while I'm a deputy. While I have no influence over your decision, I am sure Ambereye will be a loyal and devoted deputy."

"Very well, Willowfeather," Shadestar said, nodding. "I suppose I have to explain that to the clan. Oh no. A deputy change, right as things are getting worse."

After the announcement, Willowfeather realized just how free and happy she felt. Unlike many cats, who desperately wanted to be deputy and one day leader, Willowfeather would serve better as a warrior. Someone who had fewer responsibilities, while still following the Warrior Code.

"Well, well," Sunheart's voice snickered. "Little kitty got too scared to do the job. You _promised that you would find Darkshadow. _And now you're not even deputy."

"Go away," Willowfeather said, her head bowed. It was true. She had said she would try. "I _am _trying, Sunheart. I told you, I'm sorry I wasn't the mate you wanted. I'm trying to make it up to you. For _your _pain. Even though the trouble you have caused for me is much, much more than just a bit of heartache. See, I'm not someone like you. Because I remember my debt and I pay it. You wait for it to pile up. The least you could do is stop bullying Sweetbreeze. When she was an apprentice Mousetail pushed her into the river, Graypaw clawed her pelt into pieces and she was still loyal to me. _That _is what true friendship is. Just please, stop hurting her. She's a warrior now. I can't take care of her- but she will die if you keep going."

"Then accept that I will never fall for your tricks again. I have Darkshadow now. But I never ordered anybody to attack _Sweetbreeze. _I wanted to have my revenge but I am a warrior. I would never attack anyone else.

"_What?_"

With that, Willowfeather left the camp, determination and terror etched onto her pale grey features.

_Kit scent._

And fresh, too. No doubt Cinderkit's scent. Holding her breath, Willowfeather followed the trail to a small cave, and without even thinking about safety, walked straight in. The first thing she saw was a cat with a mangled leg, dark-pelted and not breathing. Then she realized the cat was Darkshadow.

Darkshadow. Dead.

A cat leapt onto Willowfeather from behind while she stared at her clanmate's body, and everything went black- but before that, she caught a glimpse of a scrawny, brown tom.

A tom that looked suspiciously like…

Mousetail.

**I feel like this chapter was really rushed and not very good but for some reason I still like it. I hope you like the cliffhanger at the end there :)**

**If you liked it don't forget to review because why not. Please don't be too mean (I mean, this **_**is **_**only my first fanfiction) but also be honest! By the way, who is your favourite character in the story?**

**Thanks for reading this and hopefully, I'll update soon enough (haha you probably won't see me again for about five hundred years).**

**On that note, bye?**


	13. Willowfeather's Terrible Plan

**I updated quite recently but I'm on a roll now so I hope you enjoy this new chapter. Welcome to the thirteenth chapter!**

**Do you think the kits, Snowcloud and Graypaw are still alive? We know that one cat isn't, but are the others? Review and answer this question before reading! Then you can go back and see if your answer was correct.**

**Anyway…**

"Please, Willowfeather, wake up! Wake up!" A tiny voice squeaked. _Stoneshade… _she thought dreamily, before realizing the voice was of a kit.

She jolted awake and saw a tiny, rust-coloured kit, along with two others, jabbing her frantically.

"They took Snowcloud and Darkshadow away," Redkit said frantically.

"Graypaw too," Cinderkit chimed in.

"We don't know what happened to Snowcloud and Graypaw," Completed Leafkit. "But Darkshadow fell asleep in a cave. You saw her, didn't you? Do you know why she didn't wake up?"

The way Leafkit asked the question broke Willowfeather's heart.

"Oh, kits," Willowfeather said softly. "Darkshadow won't ever wake up."

"Is she awake?" A brutal but familiar voice asked. "Ah, yes."

"Mousetail," Willowfeather said evenly, subtly drawing the kits closer to her body with her tail. Even if she wasn't with her clan at the moment, she would follow the warrior code. Unlike Mousetail.

"Yes, Willowfeather," Mousetail cooed, slinking into view. "We even got Cinderkit and Sweetbreeze today. Never liked Sweetbreeze's mother. Of course, Graypaw and Sweetbreeze have to go."

"If you touch _one hair-_"

"You are in no position to be arguing," A slick voice smothered in honey whispered. An unfamiliar rusty-brown she-cat stepped out of the shadows.

"My name is Breezefur," She said in a wheezy sort of voice. "Soon to be Breeze_star._"

"What?" Willowfeather looked around wildly. "That makes no sense-"

"Oakstar is a new leader. _I _killed the old leader of ShadowClan and in her fear, Shadestar exiled me. Mousetail here pitied me and he has helped me with my plan. I will ruin the clan that ruined my own life, and then I will bring it back up- as _my _clan."

"No," Willowfeather whispered. "Does that mean you tried to convince Darkshadow to join you? And she refused?"

"Oh, yes, we have a smart one," Breezefur smarmed. There was nothing breezy about her. "Snowcloud is next. We will see if he will join our clan or not."

"_Absolutely not!_" Came the cry from the next cave. "Never! I'll go and join Darkshadow at any time! Then I can meet Goldberry again!"

"No, Snowcloud," Willowfeather pleaded, loudly enough for the tom to hear from the next cave. "Don't give in but don't let them kill you. Do you really think Goldberry would want you to give up on the clan she spent so much of her life protecting?"

There was silence.

"No, Snowcloud," Mousetail sneered. "It's all too late. We have finally gathered what we need and we will attack as soon as possible. The plan was to have Darkshadow as deputy, but you became deputy, and now it's Ambereye. Two very strong deputies and Goldberry wasn't bad either. Darkshadow was _supposed _to be useless and listen to us, but she didn't become what she needed to be. No matter, we will win anyway."

"No," Willowfeather gasped. "I won't allow it."

"Don't you see, Willofeather, dear?" Breezefur asked, smiling. "It's too _late._"

Willowfeather looked around wildly, looking for an escape route. There was no place to escape, other than a small hole at the edge of the cave. It was too small for any cat to squeeze through.

_Unless…_

It was a terrible idea. The plan would risk kits' _lives, _for goodness sake. But Snowcloud had been shoved in the same cave as her and he reasoned that if the kits were willing to try it, they might as well take the opportunity.

They explained the idea to Cinderkit, Redkit and Leafkit, and they all nodded eagerly.

"We know the caves by heart," Redkit mewed. Though he was bigger than his siblings, he still seemed so small.

"And _I _remember how to get back to camp," Cinderkit boasted. "I'll be the most useful of all."

"Alright, alright," Willowfeather gave in. The poor kits would sneak through the hole, and look for help. They were waiting until morning when the border patrols would be out, increasing their chances of success, and most predators would be returning to their dens. It was the safest time- in theory.

One by one, they shoved the kits up, and they bounded away into the morning.

"They'll be safe," Snowcloud whispered, probably trying to convince himself more than Willowfeather. "I can't imagine what it would be like to lose Lilykit and Flamekit. I hope Dawnflower doesn't have to go through any more pain today."

'We have a bigger question," Willowfeather finally spoke, her voice quivering. "Where are Sweetbreeze and Graypaw? Neither of them would be disloyal to the clan, as grumpy as Graypaw is. What happened to them?"

Snowcloud was quiet.

**What did you think of this chapter? When Breezefur appeared in my mind, I wanted to squish her like a mouse and throw her out, but then I realized she might be a good villain… What are your thoughts?**

**The next chapter should come up soon- it will be through Leafkit's point of view (it doesn't matter, actually- my plans can affect any kit. You can review which kit you want to see). **


	14. A valiant sacrifice

**Leafkit, Cinderkit and Redkit are going on their first 'warrior mission' in this chapter! Also, I made a mistake- I made Leafkit a she-kit in the chapters before but in this chapter, he mysteriously became a tom. He's going to stay a tom from now on. This chapter won't include much of Willowfeather, even though she is supposed to be the main character in this story (Don't worry, she still is) and by the way, I need name suggestions for Flamekit and Lilykit! Please be sensible and polite with their names, so nobody will get offended. If I get multiple suggestions, I can only accept two so please don't take it personally if yours isn't selected! Anyway, onto the chapter…**

"I'm too tired," Leafkit moaned. "Willowfeather's plan really was too ambitious. We can't do this."  
"We can," Redkit snapped. Then again, the tom-kit had always been so strong, so optimistic. The biggest out of the litter and always the bravest, the strongest. Cinderkit was the thinker, the smart one out of them. Leafkit was nothing- not brave, not smart, not anything, really. Just a kit. If a cat had to list his best quality, surely 'sweet' or 'lovely' would have come up. Both code words for 'nothing special'.

"I think I know the way to camp," Cinderkit said, obviously tired of their bickering and deciding to take charge. "But maybe it would be smarter to look for a patrol, in which case we should go near where a patrol will be likely to be at."

"The borders," Redkit suggested. "Especially ShadowClan. Since the attack, Shadestar has been very cautious."

"No, you idiot!" Cinderkit snapped. "You're such a mouse-brain. It's very dangerous near the border. We could be found by a patrol from the wrong clan! Think- where is a good _hunting place_?"

"The Twoleg Home!" Leafkit squeaked suddenly. "That old shed has a good stock of berries," He said excitedly. "Surely there's a patrol there. Or maybe Kestrelwing. I think he told me that there's a good supply of borage there."

"Yes, yes," Cinderkit said, nodding, but she seemed reluctant. "I really hope someone is there. If there is nobody at the Twoleg home, I don't know where to go. I don't know how to get back to camp from _there._"

There _was _someone there- but not the 'someone' they wanted.

A badger.

"Oh no," Cinderkit squealed. "This is what I was afraid of. Should we call for help?"

"No, no!" Redkit seemed just as terrified. "We should obviously run."

Leafkit's ears perked up. A patrol was coming, but the badger was so close. The animal would take out at least one kit before the patrol, depending on how hard the kits fought. At least one life would be lost today- it was just a matter of whose life.

Leafkit suddenly realized his purpose in life.

Redkit would become a senior warrior, known for his skills in battle, his ability to hunt and the way he fought back. Cinderkit would be feared among every clan as a smart and wily warrior, a force to be reckoned with and possibly even deputy thanks to her brains.

Both would only reach what they were meant to be if they survived the first hurdle in their lives. Which left only one other option.

Leafkit stepped in front of his littermates, his beloved siblings, and faced the badger bravely.

Because _that _was his purpose. The reason there were three kits born to Dawnflower and not two was that otherwise, the two kits would not survive to become their future selves. Leafkit's destiny was to watch them from far away- but always close enough to whisper in their ears and encourage them when they needed it.

That was his last thought before the badger swooped down on him like a hawk attacking prey, and everything went black for the final time.

**Oh no… I was kind of sad when I wrote this chapter. I'm so sorry Leafkit- but don't worry, your sacrifice is not in vain.**

**Anyway, I hope this chapter wasn't too bad and if you enjoyed, please review!**


	15. Breezefur's First Attack

**In the last chapter, Leafkit was tragically killed by badgers while saving his littermates. I still feel bad for killing him off but Cinderkit and Redkit will survive (for now) don't worry!**

**Anyway, let's just get into the chapter. Not everything will go to plan…**

"No, Leafkit!" Cinderkit meowed in horror, watching as her brother was crushed by the angry badger and crumpled to the ground. No longer alive.

"D-Dawnflower believes in StarClan," Redkit said shakily as he backed away from the badger who had killed their brother. "Maybe he will have joined them already. Maybe he has met our father by now- maybe he will visit us-"

"Nothing will be the same," Cinderkit choked, shaking her head. "But we need to honour our brother's memory. And we can do that by _staying alive._"

"True," Redkit conceded, stopping to snarl at the badger ferociously, trying to keep the creature away. "I can hear a patrol coming by now. Surely it's Ambereye and Sunheart- some of the warriors are still injured from the fight against ShadowClan."

"Yes," Cinderkit said in horror as the creature came closer and closer. "But will they be here on time? They might arrive and find the dead bodies of three kits, not just Leafkit."

"We're the last hope for Willowfeather, Snowcloud, Graypaw and Sweetbreeze," Redkit pleaded to the badger. "You have to understand, badger. Please let us go."

"Don't be silly," Cinderkit said sharply, but she quivered in fear. Just because both of the kits were smart enough to talk like warriors and Leafkit had understood the meaning of sacrifice didn't mean they were grown up. They were still tiny, useless kits not yet grown into their adult bodies. Perhaps they would have had a chance as apprentices, but they weren't apprentices. They weren't out of the nursery yet, or at least they weren't supposed to be.

"I smell badger!" Sunheart's familiar voice cried. The kits had memorised the voices of all the best fighters, pretending to be them fighting ShadowClan.

"And kit scent. It must be Dawnflower's kits!" Another voice replied- but it wasn't Ambereye's- it was the voice of the clan _leader. _

"Shadestar is coming to rescue us?" Redkit said in awe, temporarily blinded by shock and too distracted to see the badger creeping ever closer.

"Pay attention, you prat," Cinderkit hissed as Shadestar and Sunheart finally came into view.

Shadestar burst into battle immediately, but Sunheart took a pause, taking in the sight of Leafkit's body, and let out an odd wailing sound.

"We were too late," He breathed. "Leafkit is already gone."

Before joining the battle, he picked up some leaves and sadly wrapped up Leafkit's body.

"You are with your father now," He whispered. "And he will protect you. May you become the warrior you never were in StarClan."

With that, he dropped the little bundle of leaves at the kits' paws and dove straight into battle.

The badger whined and ran before long, but a menacing laugh cut short their celebration and mourning for Leafkit.

It wasn't Mousetail- the voice was female, husky and in the kits' opinions, the scariest laugh they had ever heard. They had heard many cats laugh. Willowfeather's high, clear giggle, the way Darkshadow's was always dripping with self-preservation, and Shadestar's short, rare laugh. None of them was as sinister as the female's laugh.

Breezefur stepped forward, her eyes glinting.

"Now that the badger has weakened you, I attack," Breezefur threatened. "But many lives can be saved tonight by you, Sunheart."

The brown tom let out a choked gasp, clearly still grieving for Leafkit's life, cut short by a single blow.

"Darkshadow? What about Darkshadow," Sunheart whispered hopefully. "Is she safe? And Graypaw? I'm supposed to be his mentor because Darkshadow is gone-"

"Yes, Darkshadow is _gone. _She refused to listen to us," Breezefur said menacingly, and Sunheart took a step back.

"It may be too late for Darkshadow but I have cats who _will _kill the kits as soon as I call, and after Leafkit's sacrifice, that would be a shame, wouldn't it? And not just kits. Willowfeather, Snowcloud, Sweetbreeze and Graypaw… all of their lives depend on you. You are a good warrior, Sunheart. You can either join us peacefully and they will remain alive," Breezefur's eyes shone with pure evil. "Or you can stay and you will be killed, along with every other cat in the clan."

Sunheart looked at Breezefur in conflict.

"I will never be _truly _loyal to you, no matter how hard I try," He fought, trying to weasel his way out.

"Just like you thought you couldn't be _truly _loyal to Darkshadow but it worked out fine, didn't it?" Breezefur drawled. "You dump a perfectly good mate who practically worships you, then you get another mate a _day _later- might I add that _she worships you too-_ and then once that one dies, you go back to the first one."

Sunheart flinched.

"Never loyal to your she-cats, are you?" Breezefur completed. "No matter, I'm sure you'll find _another _mate when you watch Willowfeather crumple, free of life. There will be many she-cats in our new and improved ThunderClan…"

Sunheart swore, and Breezefur started swearing too, when Cinderkit's nervous little voice broke the string of rude words.

"Actually, Breezefur, I think you are jealous of Sunheart," She said unhelpfully. She was just a kit- but the fact that she was right just added salt to the wound.

"Why exactly would I be jealous of a disloyal, ugly old tom like _Sunheart_?" Breezefur challenged, ready to strangle an answer out of the kit. Fortunately for the she-cat, the kit was perfectly happy to reply.

"Because Sunheart has the life that _you _always wanted," Cinderkit said simply, not knowing that she was insulting Breezefur to the face. She was simply stating the facts. "He had two she-cats who both loved him, he had the respect of his clan-mates, he was _happy. _Almost every cat you took is related to him in some way. Willowfeather, Darkshadow, Graypaw. I think you were just taking your revenge on ThunderClan when you took Sweetbreeze, Snowcloud, my brothers and me, but the others, you wanted different revenge. Revenge on the cat you thought had the happiness you think you deserved."

"He doesn't have it any more though, does he," Breezefur snickered, happy that something was going her way at last. "Darkshadow is long dead."

"That doesn't mean you're satisfied," Cinderkit challenged, knowing very well that Breezefur would lose her patience any moment now. Just as the cat ordered Cinderkit to be killed, Shadestar, bleeding badly and horribly injured, flashed in front of them. A rogue nobody recognized attacked, and Shadestar dropped to the ground, unable to fight with her injuries. _She still has a few lives left, doesn't she? _Cinderkit thought desperately, but many leaders lied about their lives to prevent panic. To her relief, after a few heartbeats, Shadestar struggled up. Her wounds hadn't healed, but four cats came running in, unrecognisable because of their speed. A lithe grey cat pushed the tom who had killed Shadestar away, while another cat stopped to help Shadestar up. To Cinderkit's surprise, the cat was Sweetbreeze. The fighting cat was Willowfeather, while Redkit exclaimed that the two others were Snowcloud and Graypaw.

"You escaped," Redkit gasped. "You got out."

Snowcloud sneered at Breezefur.

"Your idiots put all of us in the same cave and posted one guard," He said, smirking widely. "Not the best decision, I tell you."

**Aaaand… we switch back to Willowfeather!**

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather here for a clan meeting," Shadestar called, Ambereye sitting uncomfortably next to her, Willowfeather noticed.

Willowfeather, Snowcloud, Dustfoot and Wildwind sat at the base of the tall rock, looking up at their leader. Wildwind and Dustfoot nestled together, knowing that Finchkit was going to be apprenticed- but the question was who the kit would be apprenticed _to. _Sweetbreeze was far too inexperienced and though Graypaw would become a warrior, Sunheart still wouldn't get an apprentice. She had just finished mentoring Sweetbreeze herself, and Snowcloud was still grieving for Goldberry. Mousetail's treachery had been revealed, and Dustfoot and Wildwind _couldn't _mentor Finchkit. Perhaps Ambereye was the best decision.

"Graypaw, step forward," Shadestar announced. "I, Shadestar, leader of ThunderClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on this apprentice. He fought bravely in the battle with ShadowClan and fought the Rogue Clan well. He has trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend him to you as a warrior in turn." She looked down at Graypaw solemnly. "Graypaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend this Clan, even at the cost of your life?"

"I-I do," Graypaw said shakily and looked to his warrior sister for support.

"Then, by the powers of StarClan," Shadestar continued the ceremony. "I give you your warrior name. From now on, you will be called Graydust. The clan honours your strength and bravery, and we welcome you as a full member of the clan."

As the clan chanted Graydust's new name, Shadestar called Finchkit forward, her eyes scanning the crowd below quickly.

"From this day forward, until he receives his warrior name, this kit's name will be Finchpaw. Ambereye, you will be his mentor. You have skill, dedication and you passed many skills onto your past apprentices- I trust you will do the same with Finchpaw."

Ambereye nodded respectfully, jumping down to touch noses with Finchpaw.

It was almost- _almost- _as if nothing had ever happened.

**This was a pretty long chapter by my standards! I am trying to pack more action into my chapters- I hope I'm going about it the right way. From now on, I'll try to make every chapter longer than 1000 words!**

**Anyway, don't forget to review. The only rule is please, no swearing. I can handle criticism (I hope) but I feel like there are so many different ways to express your feelings other than swearing. Thanks!**

**Now that we've gotten that (probably useless) paragraph out of the way, thanks for reading!**


	16. Clan Disloyalty

**I'm back with a fresh new chapter of 'Heart of the Willows', and a lot faster than I thought, too! Like I said in my last chapter I will try to keep my promise of at least 1000 words per chapter but if it seems that the chapter is just dragging on and on I'll cut it short.**

**That said, let's get into the chapter!**

"Willowfeather! Up! Now!" Dustfoot's constantly irritated voice rang in Willowfeather's sleepy ears.

"Wha- do ya wanna?" Willowfeather slurred, blinking sleep out of her eyes. "Sorry. What do you want?"

"Dawn patrol," Dustfoot said curtly, glaring at her. Oh. Maybe she _hadn't _been forgiven by everyone then. "Since we only have seven warriors now, we're hunting as well."

Willowfeather blinked in surprise- she hadn't realized the clan had gotten so small, but when she thought about it, she realized Dustfoot was right.

"Ambereye is taking Sunheart and Finchpaw hunting at the Twoleg home," Dustfoot explained, his voice short and full of venom. "Graydust and Snowcloud are coming with us. Sweetbreeze is escorting Kestrelwing to herb-hunting, while Wildwind stays to tend to the camp. The nursery is a mess and Dawnflower needs a comfortable home."

He said it all in one breath.

"Wow, you have a great memory," Willowfeather said in surprise. To her, Dustfoot had always been the average warrior- happy, loyal, normal. Maybe he was better than Willowfeather had first thought.

"Well, thank you," He said earnestly, not sounding irritated for once and he seemed to nearly smile before his grouchy self returned. "Hurry up! We've wasted enough time already!"

**Nothing happens here.**

"How is Shadestar?" She asked Snowcloud wearily. They had been patrolling and hunting for a while, but the ShadowClan border was peaceful, and Graydust had caught a starling and nothing interesting had happened. Dustfoot and Graydust were talking animatedly about hunting technique, so Willowfeather was left with Snowcloud to talk to.

"Shadestar seems tired," He said finally. "I would think it's her last life, but she keeps claiming that she's got three left. I try to believe her- after all, she's my leader- but something in me doubts it."

Willowfeather remembered to keep Shadestar's lives secret. "Well, I'm sure she's fine," She said cheerily. "Probably just tired, I would say. Nothing can keep ThunderClan off its feet for very long."

"But really, we need more warriors," Snowcloud said sadly. "Finchkit is our only apprentice at the moment and though Dawnflower's two will be apprenticed soon, we'll soon run out of warriors to mentor them. What if there are no good warriors in time for my kits?"

"I'm sure _I _could mentor one of your kits, if I'm good enough for you," Willowfeather said mildly.

"Oh yes, of course, but you'll probably mentor one of Dawnflower's kits," Snowcloud argued.

"Then Dustfoot and Wildwind can mentor them," Willowfeather mewed, confused. "Sunheart isn't bad either. I'm sure Sweetbreeze will be a fine warrior by then too."

"Sweetbreeze. She might be a good mentor," Snowcloud considered. "But I don't want Dustfoot, Wildwind and Sunheart to mentor my kits. They are all fine warriors, but they might teach a tad too much about violence and vengeance. They all still hate you, don't they? I don't want my kits to follow their paw steps."

"Good point," Willowfeather agreed. "But there's no use in arguing much right now. You have to just hope that Shadestar selects good mentors."

"Yes, yes," Snowcloud said distractedly. "Lilykit and Flamekit will be fine. Do you hear that?"

They sat up straight and heard silent rustles. Barely more than a whisper, but very noticeable.

That's when Willowfeather noticed Graydust and Dustfoot weren't in front of them anymore.

"Where did they go-" She began, when howls cut through the air and two toms flew from the trees, nearly on top of them.

"You injured Sunheart more than you will ever know," Graydust hissed, batting at Willowfeather's head.

"And _you _supported that idiot," Dustfoot completed. "So now you will pay."

"No we won't," Willowfeather hissed. She bumped Snowcloud away from danger- she wouldn't have him be injured on her account. He hadn't done anything wrong, after all.

"Run, run for Sweetbreeze and Kestrelwing," Willowfeather managed before she was attacked fully by her _clan-mates._

As she ducked away from a leaping Dustfoot, she realized that her rivalry with Sunheart had caused scars that would take a long time to heal. _I am never falling in love again, _she thought to herself, _and I am never having kits. Nobody will ever be there when you need them. _

She thought painfully about Brightcloud, her beautiful, beloved, long-dead sister, and of Stoneshade, her first love. Both were long gone.

Or were they?

Though Willowfeather was clearly hallucinating, she saw the outlines of two starry cats in the trees, one ginger and smiley, the other a serious-faced grey tom. _Brightcloud and Stoneshade, _she thought limply. _I must be dying. They've come to collect me. _

Instead, Brightcloud jumped and leapt on top of Dustfoot ferociously. Stoneshade just stayed there, nodding at Willowfeather a few times. It seemed as if he was trying to say that he would be there at other times to help her. Now was Brightcloud's turn to help her sister.

Together, they beat back the two toms until they lay in a crumpled, shivering heap on the forest floor.

"This is disloyalty to your clan. This is disloyalty to _ThunderClan,_" Brightcloud told them quietly, a fire dancing in her eyes. "I trust that there will not be a next time."

"N-no," Graydust whispered.

"You took your oaths only yesterday," Brightcloud hissed, stardust glittering in her ginger fur. "Yet you have already broken the code."

Both of them looked shamefully at the feet. It was one thing to be scolded by a warrior, but by a warrior of _StarClan? _It was the greatest punishment of all.

"I will not be watching you at all," Brightcloud continued. "Despite what you might think. I will leave you in charge of your own decisions. But when it is your time to join our ranks… depending on your choices, you may not be accepted."

Brightcloud began to walk away, pausing only to throw her sister one last, loving look.

**Nothing happens here, either.**

Willowfeather looked around the camp- Snowcloud had been right. He and Ambereye sat with her now, sharing a measly thrush.

"Well, Dustfoot and Wildwind are mates," Ambereye pointed out the obvious. "Maybe they will decide on a new litter."

"Maybe," Snowcloud conceded. "What is concerning is the lack of hope. Nobody seems to be even _looking _for a new mate."

"The same goes for you," Willowfeather said drily. "And I've promised myself no kits, no love, no anything. I'm happy with friends."

"Well, Finchpaw has been looking moonily at Sweetbreeze," Ambereye shrugged.

"Now this is just a gossip session," Willowfeather groaned. "What's really concerning for me is the lack of she-cats looking for mates. I don't want a mate, you don't want a mate, Ambereye, Wildwind has one but she doesn't want any more kits. That leaves Sweetbreeze from the warriors and then there's the kits," She said, feeling sick. "If the clan survives that long, Cinderkit and Lilykit might end up having kits of their own-"

"No," Snowcloud said hollowly. "Lilykit is sick. _Really _sick. She's likely to survive, yes, but Kestrelwing says the disease will leave her unable to have kits."

"Life isn't all about the kits," Willowfeather shrugged, and Ambereye nodded in agreement. "We're happy without them, and you probably won't have any more. So that's that."

**A couple of days later…**

"It's Lilykit," Snowcloud said, his voice empty and cold, as if he had no life left in him.

"W-what happened? Did she die?" Willowfeather gasped, bracing herself for the worst.

"N-no," Snowcloud sighed, settling into his nest in a sad, useless way. Willowfeather noticed the muscle beneath his fluffy snow-white pelt and felt her cheeks burn hot, before she nearly slapped herself. Snowcloud was a friend, nothing more.

Graydust walked in snootily, and Willowfeather noted how his beautiful grey ears curved in attentively. Her brain raced.

How could she be thinking about _toms _at such a time? She had promised herself to not fall in love ever again besides, the clan needed strong, capable warriors, not two lovesick idiots. Graydust was a cat who could easily _attack _her, and Snowcloud was a friend. She was an idiot for even thinking the way she thought.

"Lilykit," Snowcloud said suddenly, drawing her from her angry trance. "Kestrelwing and Spottedpaw cut off her _tail. _How will she become a warrior without it? They said her infection began from there and if they didn't cut it, she would die."

"Well, if she's better-"

"No she's not!" Snowcloud said bitterly. "No tail, and she will never have kits, either. Will she ever be happy? She'll always be alone and lonely."

"There's more to life than kits and fighting," Willowfeather protested, though she secretly agreed with Snowcloud.

"Maybe, but she might not see it that way," Snowcloud mewed angrily. "She has already lost her mother at a very young age and her clan is in shambles. That is stress enough for a young kit. Not to mention the clan leader is ill and now she's lost her tail and the ability to have kits. If she outlives Flamekit and I, she will be _alone. _She'll never find a mate-"

"Just because she won't have kits doesn't mean she won't have a mate," Willowfeather said sharply, fed up with Snowcloud's depressing and meaningless rambling. "And she'll still have friends, won't she? And her mentor. Her mentor might still be alive, and there might be elders by then-"

"No, there won't, and you know that!" Snowcloud spat, seeming more angry at the unfairness of it all than her. "There won't be any elders. The oldest cats in the clan are Ambereye and myself. In that situation, I'll be dead, and we all know Ambereye will be a warrior until her death. Dustfoot and Wildwind still won't be old enough to be _elders-_"

"If you're going to be like that, I'll just be her friend and let's move on with life! We can't predict the future," Willowfeather gasped, getting up to ask Ambereye about another hunting patrol, for the fresh-kill pile was completely empty.

She looked back, fiery and defiant.

"The only way to predict the future is to _make _it."

**Yep, I've met my goal! Sorry if this chapter seemed like it was dragging. I didn't do it on purpose, but the main events in this chapter weren't too exciting (apart from Dustfoot and Graydust attacking Willowfeather- I hope that was interesting). Anyway, thanks for reading and before I go and write another chapter…**

**Remember to review!**


	17. Graydust

**I'm back with another chapter, yay! Wow, seventeenth chapter if I'm counting correctly. I never thought I'd get this far- thanks so much for your kind words, I couldn't have kept going without your lovely reviews!**

**By the way, thank you to Hazel Ashwood for thinking of Finchpaw's lovely new name. Flamekit and Redkit still need names (I decided on one for Lilykit and I got a lovely name suggestion for Cinderkit, so only two more left!)**

**It's about six moons after the events of last chapter, and Willowfeather is now two and a half years of age, or about 26 years old in human years. I hope you like this new chapter…**

Willowfeather looked around her clan proudly. It had come so far in six moons, though admittedly, the lovely warm weather probably had something to do with her good mood. Finchpaw had been named Finchcry a few days ago, and Flamekit and Lilykit were going to become apprentices soon. Redpaw had been apprenticed to Graydust, and Cinderpaw to Snowcloud, both good warriors. Despite the fact that Graydust was strong and loyal, Willowfeather still thought that Redpaw would probably become some evil monster because of Graydust's mentoring, and that Sweetbreeze deserved an apprentice more than Graydust did. And all of that was mixed in with Willowfeather's jealousy- she wanted a new apprentice. Sweetbreeze would probably receive one of the kits, but who would the other kit be mentored by? If Willowfeather was chosen, she hoped she wouldn't get Flamekit. He still gave her odd looks sometimes, and she felt more and more spooked every time.

**Insert nothingness here.**

"Would all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather here?" Shadestar asked feebly. Kestrelwing and Spottedpaw, now Spottedbird, said that it was a miracle that she had survived so long with her sickness. Everyone expected her to die anytime soon, but Ambereye insisted that their leader was fine and that she wasn't ready to lead anyway.

"Lilykit and Flamekit, step forward," Shadestar said, after a hacking fit. She let out one more cough. "From this day forward, this apprentice will be named Lilypaw," She broke off to cough again, and she leaned toward Lilypaw. "Your mentor will be Sweetbreeze. Sweetbreeze, Willowfeather taught you many skills that have left you talented and kind, and I trust you will pass these skills onto Lilypaw." Lilypaw's bright eyes shone with happiness as she touched noses with her new mentor. _My apprentice has an apprentice, _Willowfeather thought joyfully, too distracted to realize that Flamekit's ceremony had begun.

"Your mentor will be Willowfeather," Shadestar wheezed, before limping back to her den. Flamepaw walked to Willowfeather steadily, but his eyes shone strangely. Willowfeather felt faint. _Barely a warrior for four seasons, but already with two apprentices, _she thought grudgingly. Even if one of the apprentices was unwanted. She touched noses with her new apprentice, trying to smile and succeeding, though she was a little stiff.

"I can't wait for training to begin," Flamepaw said lightly, and Willowfeather finally understood the meaning of his stare. It wasn't anger, it wasn't kindness, it wasn't sympathy, it was _ambition. _

_Does he think I stand in his way? _Willowfeather worried, before pushing the thought away. StarClan had told her that the young cat was destined for greatness- and if he was ThunderClan's last hope, she would do _anything _to save her clan, even if it meant giving up her life. That was what being a warrior was about, after all.

"I'll teach you everything I know," Willowfeather said, her voice wobbling slightly. "_Everything._"

"Why do you keep giving me weird looks?" Flamepaw asked wearily on the fourth day of training. "We'll be training together for many moons. I want you to like me."

"It's _you _giving me weird looks," Willowfeather countered. "And if you want me to like you, you better explain."

Flamepaw looked surprised that she had caught on. "Well," He said evenly, his eyes calm. "I'll only tell you if you tell me afterward."

"Sure," Willowfeather, settling down to eat a pigeon. They had just finished their first battle training session and she was hungry.

"Well," Flamepaw looked at her, eyes glinting. "Snowcloud, and Goldberry when she was alive, always described to me the glorious life of a warrior. How we patrol our borders and protect our territory, strengthen our belief in StarClan through prophecies, dreams and stories. But I don't _want _that life. But I have no connection to StarClan and the life of a medicine cat doesn't appeal to me. Then I realized… I want to have a life that is _bigger. _Not a life dedicated to warriorship, but a life dedicated to improvement, and the big ideas I have always had. When I was a kit, I had nothing but a pedigree and big dreams. But now, I still have my dreams, but I also have a mentor to teach me from _experience _what it is like to be deputy, and a better idea of how the clan works." His eyes were faraway in dreamland, and his voice dropped to a whisper. "But Goldberry _hated _the life of a deputy. Everybody in the clan looking up to you, all clans judging your skill, waking up everyday without a chance to have a new life. She didn't want that for me or Lilypaw."

He looked down, looking upset.

"Now, every time I have dreams about deputyship and even being leader, I feel like I'm letting Goldberry down. That I betrayed my mother."

"Don't be silly," Willowfeather said, but she agreed with Goldberry's view of deputyship. "I didn't like being a deputy either. But I believe that I was a good deputy, and so was Goldberry. Not all cats are cut out for deputyship. I will certainly teach you and if being a deputy truly is your destiny, your mother will understand."

Willowfeather looked up at the stars and hoped that she was right.

**More nothingness… and then a few hours later**

Graydust was clearly creeping out of camp, and Willowfeather had no intention of letting him go alone. She went through the dirtplace and tracked his scent, eventually finding him and concealing herself in a bush. He was talking to a cat on the border of the territory. Willowfeather could not see the cat from her angle, but the voice was easily recognisable.

"I am so glad that you came, dear," Breezefur purred. "I'm so sorry we have to live like this. I promise, when I take over the clan, we can be true about our love."

_Love? Graydust loves _Breezefur? Willowfeather thought in panic. She had long passed her weird thoughts about toms, but that didn't mean she wasn't concerned about her clan-mate.

"For the last time, Breezefur, I don't love you," Graydust snapped. "You trapped me into this. You'll kill all of my clan-mates if I don't do this. If this is real love, I don't know what fake love is. You'll kill Ambereye and Shadestar anyway, but I _will _save the others."

"Well, well, such loyalty," Breezefur snapped back. "You can't leave me, now that I am expecting your kits."

Graydust visibly flinched, but he didn't seem shocked.

"Don't talk about it," He muttered. "You're having them in one moon, aren't you? I'll meet you then. But my clan is busy. I can't meet you any sooner. Besides, I love another cat."

Breezefur hissed loudly. "Not Plant Cat? Or Brown Eyes?"

"Ambereye has _amber eyes, _that's the whole point," Graydust snapped, and he hesitated for a moment. "And not Willowfeather."

But his hesitation told the _real _story.

**They're back at the camp!**

"What are you meeting _Breezefur _for?" Willowfeather hissed to Graydust as he made his way to the Warriors Den, his gaze clouded with shame. He stopped and looked back at her.

"She threatened my clan," He said emptily. "And now, she will kill me if I leave. She has trapped me into this with kits. Innocent kits."

"At least you won't have to meet her until next moon," Willowfeather said sympathetically, not telling him what she knew.

He nodded sadly.

"Look, I'm really sorry," Graydust said softly. "Can you forgive me, or at least enough not to tell the clan?"

Willowfeather nodded slowly.

"For now," She replied. "But I don't know how long I can keep that promise for."

**The next day (Wow there are a lot of time skips in this chapter…)**

The next day, it seemed as if the line between Willowfeather's side and Sunheart's supporters seemed darker, more outlined. More dangerous.

In fact, when Sweetbreeze returned from a hunting patrol with Wildwind and Dustfoot, they both looked very smug, while Sweetbreeze was in furious tears. She refused to speak of what had happened, but she had a long scratch down her side. Poor Lilypaw's ears had both been scratched and while Ambereye seemed strong and calm as usual, when she walked, Willowfeather noticed faint scars criss-crossing her legs.

"We are a _clan,_" Shadestar proclaimed. "We do not hurt each other. We trust. Love. Forgive. But we do not _attack._"

Graydust, Dustfoot and Wildwind looked at their paws nervously, but Sunheart just looked on, oblivious to the fight. It seemed as though he had no feelings. Willowfeather didn't know how he felt about Darkshadow's death.

Shadestar's announcement, though, had nothing to stop the Sunheart supporters. They took all the food while everyone else had not eaten, and in the end, some of the cats looked ready to break the warrior code.

"Honestly, as loyal I am to the Warrior Code," Snowcloud whimpered, "I might eat some food on patrols."

Willowfeather finally had her own taste when Dustfoot gifted her a mouse- a mouse laced with poppy seeds.

"Trying to put a clan-mate to sleep!" Willowfeather sobbed angrily as she patrolled with Flamepaw, Lilypaw, and Sweetbreeze. "That's more against the code than anything!"

Suddenly, there was a happy screech from Lilypaw and she whirled around to see the apprentice happily tucking into a large _beetle._  
"I figured nobody else would want to eat it, so it isn't against the warrior code," The apprentice shrugged.

From then on, the supporters of Willowfeather and Willowfeather herself used Lilypaw's strategy. They hungrily gnawed on bones left by foxes, chewed on edible leaves, and ate beetles when they could. While Spottedbird and Kestrelwing desperately tried to find out why they were growing so skinny, for they did not know about the war with Sunheart's group. Shadestar was generally confined to her den and with the deputy being part of Willowfeather's group, everything quickly descended to chaos. Sunheart's troupe broke the warrior code left and right. They started trouble at gatherings and blamed it on Sweetbreeze, or they 'accidentally' scared away the finch that Snowcloud was stalking. They would steal feathers out of Ambereye's nest and drip water all over Willowfeather's. They had no trouble accidentally unsheathing their claws on Lilypaw and Flamepaw. Flamepaw always put up a good fight but Lilypaw, with half of her tail missing, never had balance that was quite right. It was pretty obvious who was the better fighter, but Lilypaw had so much more common sense, it was hard to guess who would be the better warrior. Dawnflower seemed to never be fed either, though she wasn't on anyone's side, and though Redpaw and Cinderpaw were treated well enough, it was clear their mentors' petty arguments was getting in the way of their training. Though Redpaw and Cinderpaw had been training for longer, Flamepaw could beat Redpaw in any battle and Lilykit's tracking skills were put to better use than Cinderpaw's. Even Finchcry was taking part in the 'war'. The arguments had lasted so long- it was starting to get tiring.

**Another bit of nothing.**

"I _am _the best hunter in the clan," Willowfeather heard Finchcry boast to Sweetbreeze. "Better than Willowfeather, at any rate," he added.

_That's not going to win you Sweetbreeze's heart,_ Willowfeather thought. _Besides, your side of the argument will get mad if you're even seen being friendly with a cat from our group._

Sure enough, she saw Wildwind glare at Finchcry as she went past.

"That's lovely," Sweetbreeze said politely. "But if you excuse me, I would like to have something to eat."

Finchcry looked furtively around, to check that nobody else was around. Wildwind was already heading out of the hollow. Finchcry darted to the fresh-kill pile, grabbed a fat squirrel, and gave it to Sweetbreeze.

"Please, eat it in the Warriors Den and share if it you must, but bury the remains. I don't want to get in trouble, but I don't want to see you starve," Finchcry pleaded, before going back to his loud, boastful self. "You know, I caught that squirrel myself. Climbed up onto a branch and bam, the squirrel didn't know what hit it."

"Thank you," Sweetbreeze nodded politely, but her eyes told Willowfeather that her former apprentice wanted to bash Finchcry's head against a rock. "You must be a great hunter," She added awkwardly, before hurrying into the Warriors Den.

"I got food," She said breathlessly. Willowfeather nodded, and Snowcloud got up to fetch the apprentices, while Ambereye looked at it hungrily.

"Wait, Dawnflower," Ambereye said suddenly. "It is against the warrior code to leave a nursery queen hungry."

Willowfeather thought for a while as she waited for the others to return. While Snowcloud insisted that he and Ambereye were the oldest in the clan, Willowfeather realised Dawnflower was older. Already, the limping but beautiful she-cat had flecks of grey around her creamy muzzle. Willowfeather knew that the lack of food wasn't helping her.

As Dawnflower limped in, the apprentices following, everyone looked wide-eyed at the squirrel.

"We need to eat before somebody comes along," Sweetbreeze said breathlessly, and began distributing the food. She gave the biggest, juiciest chunk to Dawnflower, but the ageing queen refused.

"I'll take a leg," She protested. "This is too much for an old biddy like me. The fresh new blood of today needs the best food." She tore up the chunk of meat into two and let Lilypaw and Flamepaw take the pieces. Redpaw and Cinderpaw were handed a leg to share, while Dawnflower received the other leg and Ambereye, as she was deputy, was handed a juicy strip of meat. Sweetbreeze received the last piece of good meat, as it was her meal, while Willowfeather and Snowcloud gnawed on the fat clinging to the skin. They saved the bones in Willowfeather's nest, knowing that they would need some food later on, even if the food was basically carrion stuck on a few bones.

**A few days later…**

"Please, would you meet me soon?" Graydust asked tentatively, looking into Willowfeather's eyes. They were on a patrol together, and Flamepaw had decided to stay behind. "You know, just to work out the rest of the deal, you know, about you keeping my secret and everything. I need to sort out all of my affairs before I meet Breezefur."

"Yes, yes," Willowfeather said. She was distracted once again by the way Graydust's ears were perked up attentively, but his smooth, sleek pelt and his muscled legs were now added to her mix. He really was a well built cat…

"Just for the deal," She blurted out, more to herself than Graydust.

"Of course," Graydust replied, but he looked just a bit disappointed.

**Honestly, this chapter was a string of nonsense. This is what happens when I try more than one chapter a day, but oh well, let's hope it works.**

**Anyway, I thought I would add a list of who is on who's side.**

**SUNHEART**

**Sunheart**

**Finchcry**

**Wildwind**

**Dustfoot**

**Graydust**

**WILLOWFEATHER**

**Willowfeather**

**Snowcloud**

**Ambereye**

**Sweetbreeze**

**Cinderpaw**

**Redpaw**

**Lilypaw**

**Flamepaw**

**The sides are kind of even, because Sunheart's side has more talent. Most of Willowfeather's side is apprentices, though Ambereye and Snowcloud are on Willowfeather's side as well (and Sweetbreeze of course).**

**Anyway, I'm not that good at writing romantic-ish kind of stuff so sorry I messed up there, hopefully I improve. Thanks for reading this far!**


	18. Visits from StarClan

**Eighteenth chapter! Anyway, I thought I would respond to some reviews here, just a few of the most recent ones, though after this chapter it'll just be reviews from the last chapter if that makes sense.**

**Lightpool- Thank you for your kind words! This story is far from over, so you have much to look forward to!**

**Brambleflower- Thanks so much for your words of encouragement, and your name ideas. I might use some of your names for Redpaw and Flamepaw. Also, responding to your question… I can't tell you. Yet. Sorry, but this chapter should reveal the answer, though it might not be straight forward! Yes, I agree with you, though, Sunheart is now just being bee-brained!**

**Kuroimori- Thanks for your encouragement, and I love your name idea for Cinderpaw! I think I might use it, hmm…**

**Icanwrite13- Maybe it is time to slaughter him, but then he won't be able to play his part later in the story… can he stay alive just a little bit longer? Pretty please?**

**Anyway, onto the story!**

"So why did you want to meet me?" Willowfeather asked Graydust, pawing the floor. She hoped that he hadn't brought her out to an ambush, though she doubted he had the guts.

"Oh, to figure out our deal, you know," He said breezily, but his eyes betrayed his casual voice. "You've been keeping my secret but I need to make sure it stays that way. What do you want? Finchcry to leave Sweetbreeze alone? More food?"

"I want you to stay loyal to the warrior code," Willowfeather said, her voice cracking slightly. "Cats shouldn't have to hide love. I know Finchcry likes Sweetbreeze and Sweetbreeze just might like him back. I won't force them apart- but they feel so _threatened _by you that they have to hide it."

Graydust nodded slowly, but shook his head. "I'm sorry, but I'm not powerful enough in the group to do that. Sunheart and Dustfoot make all the stupid decisions."

"Then become powerful enough in the group," Willowfeather grouched. "Or join our side," She added hopefully. If Graydust joined them, Redpaw would finally be able to stop hiding.

"No," Graydust shook his head firmly. "What you did to Sunheart was wrong, and you're going to do the same thing to Snowcloud. Then who will be your next victim-"

"What?" Willowfeather blurted. "I am not doing anything like that anytime soon and never have! _Sunheart _dumped _me, _not the other way around! Is that what this squabble is about, who started _what_?"

Graydust looked ashamed.

"Sorry," He mumbled. "But this is the way it is. I can't help it. Like, I said, I'm not the top of the group, and if I don't do what they say, I will be abused like you are."

"Selfishness," Willowfeather spat, anything she might have felt for him disappearing in an instant. "Giving up the greater good for your own gain. If you joined us, you could have helped break this war up. Instead, you break the Warrior Code. you must _lay down your life _for the good of the clan and that is what has kept _my _group alive." _Finchcry's generosity to Sweetbreeze probably something to do with it, _She thought in amusement. That morning, Sweetbreeze had looked a little less annoyed at Finchcry.

"I really am sorry," Graydust mewed wretchedly, padding away in the direction of the camp. "I'll try my best to stop attacking clanmates. I won't, at least. I can't promise anyone else."

"If you were sorry enough, you would join us," Willowfeather said bitterly, curling up to sleep on a soft patch of earth. She was too miserable to go back to camp.

**In Willowfeather's dream**

Willowfeather woke up in a grassy clearing, somewhere Willowfeather recognized on ThunderClan territory. Only in ThunderClan, leaves were slowly beginning to fall. In the clearing Willowfeather stood in, the grass and leaves were lush as ever.

"StarClan," Willowfeather breathed. "Am I dead?"

"No, Willowfeather," Replied a familiar voice, only lacking its usual scorn. Willowfeather turned to see Darkshadow, but with a sleek pelt and no limp. Her pelt glittered with stars.

"I called you into this dream to apologise," Darkshadow said softly, coming closer. "Now that I am in StarClan, I can see more clearly now. I was so fuelled by jealousy, bitterness and hate that I only saw what I wanted to see. Now, I know that what I did was wrong. I'm sorry."

Willowfeather had never, ever expected Darkshadow to apologise to her, especially in that way. StarClan had dramatically changed the she-cat.

"Thank you," Willowfeather whispered. "It changes things, it really does. But either way, we may be on our way to join you soon. Even with the food Finchcry sneaks Sweetbreeze and our extra little snacks, we are still starving."

Darkshadow nodded sympathetically. "Stoneshade, Brightcloud and I have been trying to reach Dustfoot, Wildwind or Sunheart, but they have closed their minds to StarClan. The only dreams we can reach are your group's and Finchcry's. We have been trying to convince Finchcry to stop such actions, but he will soon close his mind as well."

Willowfeather stopped herself from crying out, desperate for answers.

"Where does Graydust's loyalty truly lie?" She asked quietly, afraid to hear the answer.

"He may be misguided and loyal to the wrong cats, even Breezefur and Sunheart, but he has a chance," Darkshadow murmured, beginning to fade away. "And you also have a chance. What better time to convince him than in the present? Wait a while, and you will be okay."

**Aaand… she's woken up**

Willowfeather woke with a jolt, and saw a small, dead mouse lying beside her with Graydust's scent on it.

"I won't be poisoned twice," She muttered, checking the mouse, before realizing it was perfectly fine. Perhaps it was Graydust's way of apologising.

As much as she wanted to eat it, it would be disloyal to not take it back. Dawnflower looked like an elder, she was so skinny and frail, while the apprentices were nothing but bony skin. Dawnflower would appreciate it- she would probably retire to the elder's den soon. The only cat older than her was Shadestar herself, and Shadestar saw nobody in the day but Kestrelwing and Spottedbird was left to care for the clan.

Spottedbird said that Shadestar would be dead before the beginning of leaf-bare, leaving Ambereye worrying about how she would feed the clan in leaf-bare and how she would stop the fighting.

_Our leader's death would only drive our clan apart more, _Willowfeather worried as she began to head back to camp, the juicy blood of the mouse flooding into her mouth. It was freshly caught- definitely something worth sharing. The mouse had plenty of flesh, though some animals had begun to lose weight.

Most cats had even given up long before.

**Back at camp…**

"What's wrong, Willowfeather?" Snowcloud asked sympathetically. It was the end of the day and they were all still hungry. Come leaf-bare, they would all be dead.

Willowfeather had been acting stiff and depressing all day, and now it was time to share tongues and eat, she was even worse.

"Nothing's wrong," Willowfeather snapped before her gaze drifted to where Redpaw, Graydust and Sunheart sat. Redpaw looked uncomfortable, Graydust looked tired and Sunheart was clearly angry, whispering under his breath.

"You're lonely, aren't you?" Snowcloud barrelled on. "You had Stoneshade, and when he died, you found comfort in Sunheart. Now Sunheart is gone and you don't know who to love."

Willowfeather glared at him, and muttered a few rude words in his direction.

"So you found solace in someone else, met them last night, and it went wrong," Snowcloud persisted. "The question is, who did you meet?"

"You are _wrong, _dead wrong," Willowfeather glared, before she sighed and sat down. "It is true, I did meet someone, but it wasn't anything about love. I caught Graydust doing something he shouldn't, so we made a deal yesterday and then he started accusing _me _of things I didn't do."

"Sweetbreeze certainly is the preferable company to her brother," Snowcloud commented, his voice betraying completely nothing. "Is that where the mouse came from too?"

"Why do you need to know?" Willowfeather lashed, her breath coming in short, desperate gasps. "You're nosy, you're a bad hunter, you're good for nothing. Here I thought you were my friend, but you mess it up. Why don't you just join Sunheart?"

She got up and left, choking as she left the camp. Snowcloud got up and looked once more at her retreating form, hurt clouded in his gaze before he entered the Warriors den, not looking back anymore.

**Snowcloud's Point of View**

_I only wanted to help, _he thought bitterly. _She's one of my only friends left, now that my kits are apprentices and Goldberry is gone. And she accused me of being mouse-brained. She did to me what Graydust did to her._

Though he had every reason to be angry, he felt only sadness. He knew what it was like to be lonely too, though friends had always been enough for him until Goldberry danced into his life, colouring his days.

_Forgive her, _he heard a familiar voice say, and he whirled around to see a pale, gold and white she-cat looking at him lovingly. _She is not the only one to feel pain. But one day, you will all join our ranks, and understand why. She is important to the future of this clan._

"Goldberry," Snowcloud whispered, scrambling up to his paws. "Why did you leave me? How? We had kits, we had love, we had a clan. If you had lived, you could have kept this clan together. You could have watched Lilypaw and Flamepaw grow up with me!"

Goldberry's beautiful, loving eyes darkened. _It was never meant to be. But know that one day, we will be together again, you and I._ She slowly, sadly faded away, but she gave him one last smile.

**I feel a bit sad because of what is happening next chapter. One little hint!**

**I have two questions for you. One is a prediction and one is about writing style. Firstly, do you like seeing other cats' POVs, or not? The next question is, do you think Graydust will stay in Sunheart's group? Several hints dropped not only in this chapter, but also when I was responding to reviews. Speaking of reviews, don't forget to leave one and I might respond to it in the next chapter.**

**Thanks for reading!**


	19. A Final Ceremony

**The nineteenth chapter of Heart of the Willows! I recently realized we hit 20,000 words and I'm celebrating. I know it's not all that much but I'm proud of myself anyway. I'm hoping to get to 30,000 words soon enough and also, thank you all for sticking with me- the first twenty thousand words are generally the hardest for me to write and you stuck with me all this time!**

**Also…**

**Kuroimori- Yes, I will use your name for Cinderkit, and thank you for so many kind reviews! I do have a surprise planned for Graydust. Thanks for answering my questions!**

**Thank you so much but anyway, let's get into the chapter. I revealed last time that I thought this chapter was going to be sad…**

"Willowfeather, come on a border patrol with me," Ambereye invited, and Willowfeather got up, relieved to finally see a friendly face. Snowcloud still looked like he had seen a ghost, most of the apprentices were out training and Sweetbreeze had gone with them.

"Can Flamepaw come with us?" Willowfeather asked, knowing very well that he had a better chance of becoming a deputy if he had gone on many patrols. Besides, she hadn't done any training with him recently and he was the only apprentice left in camp.

Ambereye nodded. "I sent Dustfoot and Graydust to hunt near the WindClan border but apparently they have scented some WindClan scent, so I thought we would patrol there for a while, what do you think?"

"_I _think it's a trick," Willowfeather snorted. "I know from experience that those two aren't trustworthy."

"But what if they are telling the truth?" Ambereye asked thoughtfully. "It might actually be WindClan trespassing, and if we don't patrol we could be telling them to help themselves to our territory."

"Maybe," Willowfeather conceded. "We should place a patrol of our warriors nearby, though, so that we'll have backup should we need it."

"We're not using warriors up for such useless reasons. We should be able to trust our clanmates," Ambereye sighed. "We are going patrolling, and that's that."

Willowfeather swallowed a sigh. Cats barely listened to her until it was too late.

**At the WindClan border…**

"Our patrol has been calm so far," Willowfeather commented. "Maybe we were wrong about the toms. Though I'll admit I haven't scented anything suspicious yet."

"_Yet,_" Ambereye said suspiciously. "WindClan might still be taking advantage of us."

They realized they had reached the deepest, rockiest part of the river separating the two clans, and conceded that they were fine, for WindClan could not swim and cross the river.

"We'll be fine," Ambereye sighed, before yowls cut them short. Flamepaw let out a screech as Graydust and Dustfoot sprang out of the bushes.

"You _promised _you wouldn't attack anymore," Willowfeather hissed as she grappled with Graydust. "Yet you've _already _broken the promise. Bit quick, isn't it?"

"I'm sorry," He gasped. "Forgive us!"

At that, Dustfoot flung Flamepaw into the rushing river. Willowfeather and Ambereye both let out equal yowls, but while Ambereye stood her ground and looked for something to fish him out, Willowfeather jumped straight into the river. Ambereye hooked her claws onto a long stick and reached it towards the swirling bodies, managing to save Flamepaw. It was too late for Willowfeather.

Terrified, Willowfeather's dizzy head vaguely waited for the sharp, punishing rocks to bash her body. Already, she could feel cuts and bruises on her battered body. Flamepaw had run, probably for help, while Ambereye hissed at Graydust and Dustfoot, daring them to get closer. All while Willowfeather pitifully tried to save herself. As the water swirled faster and faster, Willowfeather noticed that Ambereye had fallen, trying to get up at the edge of the water. At least she hadn't fallen into the river.

Willowfeather dug her claws into the softest looking rock she could find, and grimaced. Her claws wrenched and pain wobbled up her weak paws, but still she held on. That was how the WindClan patrol found her.

**When WindClan finds her…**

Willowfeather woke on dry, heathery land. Comfortable, but not ThunderClan. She saw three cats looking at her worriedly- she recognized them from gatherings. Whitepelt, Lilypetal, and Thistleheart.

"What were you doing in the river?" Whitepelt demanded, giving her a suspicious look. "I don't know _what _you were thinking, but we had to risk our pelts to help you and we saw your clanmates, too! They weren't helping at all! Care to explain?"

"Please, we just want to take care of you," Lilypetal began, her voice considerably lighter and kinder than Whitepelt's harsh tone. "We need to know what's wrong."

"We will have to take you to Gorsestar, of course," Thistleheart added, naming the WindClan leader.

"Please, don't tell anybody," Willowfeather whispered, surprised by how croaky her voice was. "Our clan is divided at the moment. We are struggling very much. The clanmates you saw, they pushed my apprentice in and I tried to save him."

"Oh," Lilypetal said softly. "Your name is Willowfeather, isn't it? Well, you _must _stay with us and our clan for a few days, especially considering how banged up you are. Our medicine cat will help you."

"But we have two very capable medicine cats," Willowfeather objected, but her heart wasn't in it.

"Yes, how do you think you will survive your clan?" Whitepelt growled, while Thistleheart just nodded.

"_Alright fine will you actually do something useful already,_" Willowfeather hissed, jumping up and ready to run. She was injured and the three WindClan warriors were built for running, so she would definitely lose, but she wasn't giving in easily.

"Don't run," Lilypetal said, pushing in front of the toms. Though Lilypetal was quiet and calm, Willowfeather realized the she-cat was the leader of the patrol. Willowfeather couldn't have wished for a better executioner. "We will escort you to the camp and say that you were fighting a rogue- we will keep your secret safe. We will care for you and then you will be able to return home. Does that sound alright?"

Willowfeather nodded dumbly, as she noticed the buzzing pain attacking every part of her body. _I've broken my leg, _she realized, _and my ear is gashed badly. I hope I don't get an infection. What will my group do without me? Or will the war end with me dead?_

"Don't worry," Whispered the kind, familiar voice of Brightcloud and Willowfeather turned to see Brightcloud and Stoneshade, but Darkshadow had joined them and amber eyes glittered from behind them, though Willowfeather couldn't see who the eyes belonged to. "We continue to do everything we can, but please, you can't give up," Brightcloud pleaded, before they all faded away. "Keep hope!" That was the last ringing of her voice before they disappeared completely.

Feeling stronger, Willowfeather limped quickly to catch up with the WindClan patrol, twitching nervously at the new territory. _They have really lush territory, _Willowfeather thought, enjoying the feel of the heathery wind ruffling her fur. _And they have no problems. _

Still, she found herself missing ThunderClan, and if she wasn't there, what if her friends tore the clan apart? She couldn't abandon ThunderClan, not when she had caused so much trouble. Her friends had given up their comfort and safety for her. She couldn't abandon them now.

"I need to get back soon," She pressed to Lilypetal, who had a rabbit in her mouth, no doubt a superb catch from earlier.

"Don't worry, it's only for a few days," Lilypetal soothed through her rabbit. Willowfeather noticed that Whitepelt and Thistleheart carried prey as well- WindClan were great hunters. _We're better, but we're still hungry, _Willowfeather thought. ThunderClan could have caught more, but Willowfeather wouldn't have been able to eat any of the prey anyway. _This will be my first time eating well for moons!_

"Once we get there, Birdwing will be busy because one of our queens started kitting this morning, so help yourself to fresh-kill of the moors and wait for Birdwing," Lilypetal said, as the camp came into view.

"I want to help," Willowfeather objected. "Could I fix some dens, or organize the fresh-kill, or care for the elders-"

"I'm sure Birdwing will object to you doing any work," Lilypetal said drily, putting her kill down in the fresh-kill pile. "Well, once you've eaten, you could take some food to the elders."

Willowfeather thanked Lilypetal and took a small rabbit from the pile. There were no squirrels, mice, voles and very few of the birds Willowfeather was used to. Instead, there were rabbits, hares and a variety of birds. She sat down in a corner and began tucking into her food, until there was nothing left and her belly ached from eating too much. She hadn't eaten so well in ages. Days of chewing bitter, soggy plants and gnawing on meat-less bones had taken it's toll on her body. Suddenly, a cat Willowfeather had seen before sat down, smiling.

"Waterwish!" Willowfeather cried. "How is Rowanpaw?"

Waterwish smiled wistfully. "Rowanpelt, now," She corrected. "He's as fast as I expected, and he passed his assessment easily. I'm going to have Thistleheart's kits- you've already met him, I think- and honestly, my life is going so well it's like a dream."

Willowfeather tried to control the jealousy gnawing at her insides. "I'm doing alright too," She said earnestly, trying to hide the fact that she wasn't doing alright at all. "I gave up my role of deputy, but that has left me happier overall. We had a time when cats kept disappearing mysteriously, and we lost a kit to a badger, but other than that, the clan is doing well. A few rivalries, but that's to be expected. The only thing is, Shadestar is ill, _really _ill, and though she's alive, I don't know how much longer she will live. Ambereye will make a good leader, of course, but who will be the next deputy?"

"To be or not to be?" Waterwish giggled, and Willowfeather hollowly tried to understand.

The only thing she could focus on was how Gorsestar walked around, checking on every cat in his clan, how every cat was free to take prey from the fully stocked fresh-kill pile, how Waterwish's belly was slightly rounded with the promise of new life. WindClan was promising and upbeat, trusting and _bonded. _In ThunderClan, everything was strict, unfair and Shadestar could do nothing about it. Willowfeather scowled at the unfairness of it all.

"What's wrong?" Waterwish asked peevishly, looking annoyed that Willowfeather wasn't using their precious little time together very well.

"N-nothing," Willowfeather stammered. "Sorry, I need to take food to the elders, Lilypetal told me. I'm really sorry, I'll meet you later, because Birdwing needs to see me too. But I'll probably have to stay for a few days, so we have plenty of time to talk, though I would like to socialize with the rest of WindClan as well. It's like a long gathering!"

Waterwish looked pleased and nodded happily. "I don't really have many friends in this clan, you know. Thistleheart is always quite busy and nobody quite has the time to visit a useless old queen like me."

Willowfeather wondered if Waterwish was bending the truth, just like she was.

**A few hours later…**

"We need cobweb, horsetail and marigold," Birdwing muttered, taking a look at Willowfeather's wounds. "Juniper berry for strength, as well. A few poppy seeds to dull the pain."

"How did you meet such a nasty rogue?" Birdwing demanded as she wrapped up Willowfeather's torn ear. "Did you get rid of him, at least?"

"Yes, he ran away," Willowfeather said tiredly, watching as Birdwing finished wrapping up the ear and moved onto mashing berries into pulp. "But I got pushed into the river and it was all very painful. I don't have to _eat _those berries, do I?"

"Of course you need to eat them," The medicine cat replied. _I thought my plant-eating days were over, at least for a while, _Willowfeather thought in disgust, as she lapped up the mash. "Here, have this poppy seed. This should help dull the pain."

Birdwing set a cast for Willowfeather's broken leg, put herbs on her worst cuts and at the end of the treatment, Willowfeather resembled one big ball of herbs and cobweb.

"Now, you will have to stay here for a few days," Birdwing said sternly. "No leaving camp, either. Try not to stress yourself out."

**Another few hours later…**

Willowfeather curled up uncomfortably in her makeshift nest. _I need to return to ThunderClan, _she thought frantically, knowing that Ambereye wouldn't have received the treatment she needed. She slowly got up, her wounds aching, and limped away.

"Where are you going?" A voice asked timidly as Willowfeather reached the entrance. Willowfeather spun to see Waterwish trembling by the nursery.

"Home," Willowfeather hissed. "It's Leaf-Fall. My clan needs me more than ever, you know. I want to go and hunt."

"You _promised _you would stay and talk to me. I'm quite lonesome, you know, and I finally had a friend who could stay with me forever-"

"Forever? What?" Willowfeather growled. "I would only have stayed for a couple of days at most. Well, I don't care if you stir up trouble. I'm leaving."

Waterwish's eyes glittered sadly, before she turned away.

"Goodbye, Willowfeather."

She padded back into the nursery.

**In ThunderClan territory…**

Willowfeather walked up the river until she got down to the area the fight had taken place. She imagined beating the sour toms down with her claws, but she was too injured to fight, and she didn't know where they were. Suddenly, Willowfeather spotted something dark and large blotted near the edge of the water.

_What?_

Ambereye's lithe brown frame was in the water, waves lapping gently over her fur. The ripples over her body seemed almost… ceremonial. The cat was clearly dead.

Willowfeather choked back a gasp, pulling her friend out of the water frantically. It was far too late. Water flooded through Ambereye's sleek pelt, making her look as beautiful and groomed as she had been when alive. Willowfeather thought about burial, but she thought of a better idea to bid the faithful deputy goodbye.

She got a smooth rock and placed Ambereye's body on the rock, giving her pelt one last groom. Willowfeather then scattered fading flower petals over the brown she-cat, and buried her nose in her fur for one last time. Choking back a last sob, Willowfeather pushed the decorated stone and body out into the river and watched it until it sank into the watery depths of the river. Willowfeather stared at the spot Ambereye's body had sunk to until even the last ripples had faded and the she-cat had surely been swept away by the current.

_Goodbye, _she thought. _Rest, and when you wake, you will find yourself in StarClan._

**I was going to add a few surprises but that will be next chapter, because I realized this chapter was kind of long (it's 2400 words already…). It might not be long in your terms but it's really long for me. I also think enough has happened in the last chapter, and what did you think of the last part? I thought it was quite sad, but that might just be because I was particularly attached to Ambereye.**

**Well, on that note, don't forget to review!**


	20. The Ugly Truth

**Twentieth chapter… I hope I don't disappoint!**

**Peaklog3727- thanks for your encouragement and criticism! I do try to check every chapter I post, I just sometimes… don't. Also, thanks for your name ideas, but I already chose some for Lilypaw and Flamepaw. How about one of Waterwish's kits, as she/he will be rather important later in the story…**

**Team Riptide- Thanks! Sunheart has had an apprentice (sort of? Does Graydust count?), so he could become the deputy… but then what will happen to the clan? Hmm...**

**Kuroimori- Another review? Thank you so, so much! I was sad to see Ambereye off, but yes, I agree. And also keep in mind she was trying to distract them from Flamepaw, so she wouldn't have fought as hard.**

**WildKat12- Thank you for your opinion, and sorry I killed Goldberry off. I had to, though, because otherwise there wouldn't be the fight for the deputy position. (oops, revealing too much, perhaps?). I'm glad you like Sweetbreeze!**

**Well, I hope you enjoy the chapter!**

**Willowfeather slowly got up, her eyes never leaving the surface where Ambereye's body had sunk. **_**Graydust and Dustfoot killed her, **_**she thought, her mind clouded with bitterness and fury. **_**They have gone too far this time. They've chosen the wrong cat to fight.**_

**She wobbled back to camp, unable to see through all of her feelings. She even thought she heard Brightcloud, Stoneshade, Darkshadow and Ambereye, but she was too bitter to listen to them.**

**Willowfeather, her teeth clenched, saw that Dustfoot had taken her comfortable nest, obviously thinking she was dead. She had taken so long collecting the best moss, deciding on the best place to put the nest and lining the nest with rare eagle feathers she had spent **_**all day **_**trying to find. Dustfoot wouldn't get away with such laziness, not today. Fury curling up in her stomach as she saw a bit of Ambereye's fur stuck in his claws, she hurled him across the den and threw him into his own nest. He jumped up and let out a hiss, his eyes clouded with sleep.**

**"**_**You,**_**" Dustfoot hissed. "You survived? How did you return?" **

**"WindClan helped me," Willowfeather replied coolly. "You see, WindClan has feelings, unlike you. Are you really saying the clan thought two warriors were dead and didn't stay up to honour them?"**

**"Why would we?" Dustfoot returned, his eyes glittering with malice. "Anyway, if you looked outside properly you would see Snowcloud and Sweetbreeze, hoping you will come home. Now, we give them something to truly grieve for."**

**"No," Willowfeather stammered. "No, no. Please don't do what I think you're going to do."**

**Dustfoot attacked. He clawed viciously at Willowfeather's already scratched pelt and bit down into her broken leg. Willowfeather crumpled, yowling with agony. **_**Just get to Snowcloud and Sweetbreeze, **_**she thought. **_**Just get to safety. **_**The noise was masked by the howling breeze and dampened by the thick layers of moss and bracken, so the two warriors couldn't hear the fight. The other warriors were tranquilly ignoring the argument. Except for Wildwind, who had woken up and was watching with interest.**

**Suddenly, Dustfoot's weight was thrown off Willowfeather, and she looked up gasping. Had Sweetbreeze and Snowcloud heard?**

**No. Stoneshade looked at Dustfoot stonily, the living cat writhing beneath the claws of the StarClan warrior.**

**"I thought Brightcloud told you to stop this," He scowled. "This patrolling is a waste of our time. Why do you keep attacking? Ambereye joined us today because of a clan-mate. That clan-mate was **_**you.**_**"**

**"Brightcloud also told us she wouldn't follow us. She also broke a promise," Dustfoot defended. "She broke her promise, so we could break ours."**

**"No, she didn't," Stoneshade was unimpressed by Dustfoot's arguments. "She said **_**she **_**wouldn't be watching you, and Brightcloud is not, she's too busy watching over the apprentices. I'm not Brightcloud, and neither is Darkshadow or Ambereye. So we're allowed to stalk you."**

**Dustfoot didn't say anything, but he shrank under Stoneshade's cold gaze. "Well, bring Darkshadow out then," He finally managed, trying to sneer but failing miserably. "She'll back us up. She hated Willowfeather, didn't she?"**

**"Then you are in for a rude awakening," Darkshadow said softly, walking out from the shadows. Willowfeather hadn't seen her there.**

**"I told Willowfeather I was sorry. What we are doing is **_**wrong. **_**We must stop, and ThunderClan must be a full clan again," She continued. "Continue, and you will be banished to the Dark Forest forever."**

**Darkshadow padded back into the darkness, fading away once again. Only Stoneshade remained. **

**"W-well, that didn't prove anything," Dustfoot whimpered, whiskers quivering. **

**"We are only having our revenge for Sunheart," Wildwind grumped. "We are allowed. Willowfeather did so much-"**

**"I did **_**nothing!**_**" Willowfeather bellowed, and she was shouting so loud she thought her lungs would burst. "For the last time, Sunheart dumped **_**me**_**! I've done nothing but try to survive."**

**"You've done so much to us," Wildwind growled, and Willowfeather realized they all looked rather skinny. "We stopped hurting you, so why do you steal food from us now?"**

**"What do you mean?" Willowfeather asked, confused. "We've done **_**nothing **_**to hurt you. What do you mean, steal food-"**

**She paused when she realized that she hadn't spotted Sunheart's group eating at all for the last couple of days, while Finchcry gave Sweetbreeze cold looks instead of food.**

**"S-someone has been taking our food?" Willowfeather rasped, just as everyone else came to the same conclusion. "W-we thought it was you-"**

**"And we thought it was you," Sunheart returned, finally joining the conversation."**

**"We were stealing food away for a while," Finchcry admitted. "But we thought you started fighting back and I thought Sweetbreeze liked me, but she wouldn't give me food, so I realized-"**

**"No one gives a hoot what you've learnt," Willowfeather flashed. "The bigger problem is, who has been taking our prey?"**

**"Maybe one of the clans?" Finchcry suggested. Suddenly, in this time of fear, it seemed like they had become one clan again. **

**"Not WindClan, since they didn't have much forest prey and the prey they did have was probably from the trees near the RiverClan border," Willowfeather reported. "Wildwind, maybe go and get Sweetbreeze and Snowcloud?"**

**The she-cat scowled and stood up, throwing Willowfeather a horrible look before stalking out. Oh well. Perhaps not a clan yet.**

**"It is not a clan, yet," Stoneshade growled, his amber eyes glinting with danger. "But who wants this clan to be torn apart? Who wants this clan gone?"**

**Stoneshade looked over them harshly and walked out of the den.**

**Unknown Perspective**

**My plan is going well enough. Soon, ThunderClan will be split sufficiently for me to carry out my project... My team has helped me develop the perfect plan, and it will not fail, it cannot.**

**I have planned this since I was chased away. I have recruited cats with the same bitter feelings as me. My kits were accidentally killed by foxes, but now I realize I do not have them in my way anymore, so I can go on with my plan. I cannot leave **_**any **_**evidence, or else my leadership of ThunderClan will be threatened. I will need to plan this out... but I will also need to move fast. **

**Who do you think this is? Is this a new cat, or a cat in ThunderClan, a cat in a different clan or a completely separate one?**

**This should be sort of obvious if you paid close attention earlier in the story, I think. Well, I hope you can figure it out...**

**Don't forget to leave a review!**


	21. Betrayal

**We're up to twenty-one chapters!**

**Sorry about the problems with the last chapter, I don't know what happened... **

**Hazel Ashwood- Ambereye wasn't 'okay' with being the deputy at all. Actually, she just knew she had a specific duty to her clan (unlike Willowfeather haha). Sorry about the weird mistakes with the last chapter! Also, I totally agree with you- Shadestar should hurry up and die, but unfortunately for the clan, she's sticking around. I mean, if Firestar/any other clan leader in real warriors was the leader of ThunderClan in the story, they would at least hold a vigil for Ambereye and Willowfeather. However, they didn't really need a ceremony for Willowfeather. At least Ambereye received a proper goodbye from Willowfeather.**

**Anyway, onto the story (and hopefully there are no terrible mistakes this time...)**

"Shadestar?" Willowfeather asked meekly, walking into Shadestar's den. She had been arguing the whole day with Kestrelwing about meeting the clan leader. While he insisted Shadestar was too weak to hold a ceremony for Ambereye, Willowfeather knew Shadestar at least needed the strength to pick a replacement for herself.

"Come in, Willowfeather," Shadestar croaked. Her grey pelt was matted and dirty as if she hadn't groomed herself for days. "I'm sorry about this StarClan cursed illness. I'll be back on my feet in a few days, I promise."

"Back on your feet in StarClan, more like," Willowfeather muttered, too quietly for Shadestar to hear. "I'm really sorry, but Ambereye... Ambereye is dead."

"WHAT?" Shadestar scrambled to her paws and immediately started to cough, sounding like every breath was scraping at her lungs. "What happened to her?"

"Some rogues happened," Willowfeather said darkly- they had agreed to pretend they had been attacked by rogues.

"And Ambereye died in such an attack?" Shadestar asked, flabbergasted. "She was an honourable and brave warrior. A few _rogues _won't have done anything, and besides, you were there, and Flamepaw-"

"The rogues threw Flamepaw into the river, and I was too busy trying to get him out. Then a rogue pushed me in, and WindClan found me- that is why I was missing for a while," Willowfeather began.

"You went missing?" Shadestar asked blankly. "What do you mean?"

Was Shadestar _really _that useless? The clan leader's place as number 1 delusional mouse-brain in all of the clans was getting surer by the minute.

"It doesn't matter," Willowfeather said hurriedly. "Anyway, you need to appoint a new deputy."

**A few hours later...**

"All cats old enough to hunt their own prey, please gather here for a clan meeting," Shadestar rasped. She was slowly losing her leadership with her sanity, and her respect was slipping away. All the cats took a little longer than usual to gather for the clan meeting.

"Ambereye fought bravely against the rogues and lost," Shadestar snarled, and Willowfeather thought she was disrespectful to the deputy's memory. "So now, it is time for me to decide on a new deputy of this clan."

"While there are many capable cats in the clan," She continued, her eyes glazed and unfocused. "There is one who has stood out to me. Goldberry will be the new deputy of this clan."

All the cats shifted and eyed each other nervously- what was Shadestar talking about? Goldberry was dead!

Willowfeather walked up to Shadestar, nodding respectfully to her leader, before whispering in her ear.

"Goldberry is dead," Willowfeather whispered as she watched her clanmates grow increasingly impatient.

"Oh," Shadestar said, looking more distracted than ever. "How about Snowcloud, then?" She turned and yowled to her clan. "Snowcloud will be the new deputy!"

"I haven't had an apprentice," Snowcloud called back, looking shocked. _Third time lucky, _Willowfeather prayed as Shadestar finally decided on a third try.

"_Dawnflower _will be the new deputy of this clan, then," Shadestar growled. "Surely she's alive, and she's had an apprentice."

"Yes, but Dawnflower is a nursery queen, not a warrior," Willowfeather objected. "She can't be the deputy, either."

"I'm sorry," Shadestar murmured, her legs wobbling as if she would collapse any minute. "Willowfeather... care for my clan for now. I will appoint a new deputy soon."

Shadestar's legs gave one last jerk, and she fell down. Her slow and steady breathing revealed she was alive, though barely.

"I _knew _it would be too stressful for Shadestar!" Kestrelwing exclaimed, fur bristling. "Come on, Shadestar, you can swallow some juniper berries..."

Kestrelwing dragged the clan leader into the den, and immediately, cries rose up from the clan.

"What's wrong with Shadestar?" Lilypaw wailed.

"Why is she so useless? Can't we just get a new leader?" Dustfoot mumbled.

"And who _would _be the leader?" Willowfeather challenged. "Shadestar was a better leader than any of us can be!"

"Shadestar _was _a better leader, you said it yourself," Finchcry said darkly. "She was strong when I was a kit, but maybe now it's time for a new leader. A new power to lead us to safety."

"This is what you're worried about?" Sweetbreeze pounced. "This is the _perfect _time for a cat to attack! Who has been stealing our prey? They could come and attack right now!"

The clan fell into an uneasy silence.

"We... we could beat them back," Flamepaw offered.

"No," Cinderpaw shook her head, her voice hopeless as if they were all going to die. "No. They have probably planned this attack for moons upon moons. They will have trained, they will only attack when they are ready. We will not defeat them with brute force."

"Cinderpaw is right," Snowcloud said suddenly. "We have no hope with a show of strength. We can only use our brains here."

Suddenly, a terrible thought crept into Willowfeather's mind. _What if Shadestar is sick on purpose? What if someone is _making _her sick?_

Sickened to the core, Willowfeather dashed for the Medicine Den.

**A few moments later...**

_That would explain everything. Kestrelwing doesn't let anybody else see Shadestar, after all._ Willowfeather's thoughts buzzed as she ran as fast as she could, copying the WindClan cats' graceful movements. She winced as her injuries played up, particularly her broken leg, but she ignored them and ran faster.

Willowfeather burst into the Medicine den, where Kestrelwing fed Shadestar unfamiliar berries.

"What are you feeding her?" Willowfeather asked savagely, and Kestrelwing looked up in surprise. "I said, _what are you feeding her_?"

Kestrelwing gave her a grumpy glare. "This is private. If you need medical help, go and see Spottedbird."

"Don't be stupid, what are you _feeding _her?" Willowfeather bellowed.

"Juniper berries, if you are going to be like that," Kestrelwing said smoothly. Willowfeather was skilled at spotting lies, and she saw Kestrelwing's eyes chill with fear for a moment.

"No," Willowfeather said calmly, stalking towards them, and sniffed the air. It reeked of poison- a strange scent in a medicine den. "I, for one, think you are giving her Deathberries. Am I correct in assuming this?"

Kestrelwing looked at her. "You know nothing of medicine. I am not doing anything to Shadestar, and you don't know what juniper berries look like, we never showed them to you."

"On the contrary, I _do _know what juniper berries look like- WindClan gave some to me. And juniper berries don't look like that, I can assure you."

Kestrelwing jumped back. "I am Medicine cat, the most powerful cat in this clan at present. And I-I will not betray my true leader!"

"You already did," Willowfeather drawled. "You practically revealed all your plans. But the question is, why?"

"Because she was my littermate," Kestrelwing shot at her. Willowfeather had to stop to think about who Kestrelwing's littermates were. _I think Dawnflower was one, but she's loyal to the clan, _Willowfeather thought in confusion. _Maybe there was another one._

"She promised me safety in her new clan, and I have been helping her all this time- one failed, so she came to me," Kestrelwing added.

"And now that you have failed, the mysterious littermate will go for Dawnflower," Willowfeather realized. "And you- Shadestar will exile you! We will finally be free from you, especially considering we already have a medicine cat, so we don't need you-"

"That doesn't mean I won't return," Kestrelwing boasted before Willowfeather pounced on him. Kestrelwing tried to wiggle away, but even with injuries, Willowfeather was a good fighter, and he had no success.

Willowfeather scratched a mark into his side. "I'll make those sides match if you don't go, right now," She threatened. "Maybe poke out your eyes, too."

Kestrelwing fled.

**A few hours later...**

"Kestrelwing was that disloyal?" Finchcry's mouth was wide open, while all the other warriors and apprentices, as well as Dawnflower, nodded.

"The question is, who is Kestrelwing's littermate-"

"You don't need to wonder," Dawnflower interrupted, looking skinnier and older than ever. "My littermate's name was Breezefur. I believe you know her."

Willowfeather stepped back.

"I look much weaker than my littermates. I was always the small one, and I haven't had very much food recently- my injury is playing up, as well, I will admit. Funny, though. The kit expected to do the least ended up being the only kit out of the litter to stay loyal," Dawnflower said, bitterness in her voice for the first time. Willowfeather had never heard Dawnflower raise her voice, or mutter angrily, or do anything bitter or angry before.

"I'm sorry, I'm losing my temper," Dawnflower apologized, stepping back. "But how will we defeat my sister? Breezefur?"

**Oh no! I'm pretty sure you guys all knew it was Breezefur, but did you know that Kestrelwing was disloyal? I don't think so (Or at least I hope. I tried to keep it a secret...).**

**Next chapter will hopefully be just as exciting, if not more, but it might not work out... I will try to update soon enough! Don't forget to review!**


	22. Goodbye

**Ha, did the title trick you? Sorry, sorry… but don't worry, this story is not about to end just yet! It has at least ten more chapters to go, probably more, a lot more.**

**Yesss, twenty-two chapters... the story has come so far and I think my writing has improved so much over a short time! What do you think?**

**Kuroimori- Thanks for your many reviews! I'm disappointed that you suspected Kestrelwing but oh well, someone was bound to pick up on it, right? Also, sorry about how chapter twenty was in bold, there were so many problems with the chapter I gave up on it.**

**Doggy- thanks for your words of advice! Those are great story ideas… maybe better than my own plans…**

**WildKat12- Yes, the battle for leader… ThunderClan is in trouble, isn't it? Cue happy laugh (I feel really evil at the moment). Sorry if you were confused at all!**

**Lightpool- I know, so sad. Ambereye was one of my favourite characters though I did have to kill her off. Thanks so much for your encouragement!**

**To recap the last chapter, Kestrelwing was exposed (he was poisoning Shadestar- gasp!) and we know Breezefur is behind the attacks, but nothing else happened. A few other things are happening in this chapter though...**

"How's Shadestar?" Willowfeather asked anxiously.

"I don't know," Spottedbird replied darkly. "I think she has ingested too many deathberries- she won't be the same again, I can tell you that. She better hurry up and pick a deputy, since the clan will be leaderless soon enough."

Willowfeather gasped. Spottedbird, one of the most optimistic cats in the clan, was giving up on Shadestar. That meant there was truly no chance for Shadestar.

"It is her last life, isn't it?" Willowfeather badgered. "She doesn't have an extra life I know of?"

Spottedbird shook her head sadly, and Willowfeather shut up.

**That night…**

Willowfeather looked around.

"We need a moon high patrol to go out," She announced. "Especially considering the threats we have received. Kestrelwing's disloyalty and the missing food is only the start, I'm sure."

All the cats nodded in agreement.

"I'll go," All the apprentices shouted at the same time.

"Absolutely not," Dawnflower said to her two kits in reply. "It's dangerous out there, especially at night- foxes and owls come out at this time."

"But we're the most experienced apprentices!" Redpaw argued. "We might never get our warrior name, and then it'll all be your fault!"

"I want to go out too," Cinderpaw badgered.

"One apprentice only tonight," Snowcloud said decisively, before looking at Willowfeather for confirmation. "More than one apprentice will only end in trouble."

"Yes," Willowfeather nodded. "Redpaw, you can come with us, if you'd like. Cinderpaw, you'll be on the dawn patrol- only a few more moons until your warrior ceremonies, huh? Finchcry, Snowcloud, you can come with me today. Dustfoot, Sweetbreeze and Cinderpaw, you're in charge of the dawn patrol tomorrow."

She noticed that Graydust was gone. _It's been a moon, _she thought. _He's gone to meet Breezefur. I hope he doesn't get hurt._

**On the patrol…**

"What are we looking out for, mainly?" Willowfeather tested- she wanted to know what Redpaw had been taught. Redpaw stopped to think.

"Scents," He suggested. "It's always useful to know where and when a cat, or a group of cats, has travelled through."

Willowfeather nodded approvingly. "What else? There are other obvious signs that something or someone has been at a particular place."

"Tracks!" Redpaw exclaimed. "How could I forget? A cat, especially one trying to stay hidden, is hard to find but other creatures will be easy enough. Footprints, fur caught on branches, and claw marks might be some easy examples."

"Yes, you're right," Willowfeather conceded. "But we are tracking cats, yes? We must stay very alert."

Redpaw nodded, eyes gleaming.

"Nobody will dare to attack with me going on so many patrols," Finchcry boasted, and Willowfeather heard everyone else on the patrol let out groans. _Here we go again, _Willowfeather thought as Finchcry launched into a long, complicated story about how awesome he was and how he had once fought a badger on his own.

"Ambereye and I were with you at that time," Willowfeather said drily. "And all you did was cower behind a bush."

Finchcry stepped back. "You were the one cowering behind the bush!" He blazed, before shrinking back. "Yeah, you were right."

All the cats except Finchcry let out small _mrrows _of laughter.

"I'm better now," Finchcry argued. "I'm a great warrior. I can fight off five badgers, I promise!"

"Next time you catch sight of a badger and run, I'll remind you of what you just said," Snowcloud said sarcastically, and the whole group minus Finchcry started laughing again.

"Exactly why I sided with Sunheart," Finchcry muttered. "He's loyal and he's never this sarcastic."

"Yeah, and then you fell in love with Sweetbreeze and now all you do is follow her around all day," Redpaw cracked.

"What do you mean?" Finchcry grouched as Willowfeather and Snowcloud choked back laughter. "This is unfair. It's me versus all three of you!"

"What do you mean, are you going to attack us?" Snowcloud mocked. "Considering you ran at the sight of a badger and left your clanmates to fend it off, I wouldn't count on victory."

"Did you hear something?" Willowfeather asked suddenly, and the toms stopped.

"You're just trying to stop us from fighting-" Finchcry began, and shut up when he heard it too.

The noises were getting louder now.

The sounds of cats screaming.

**A few moments later..**

"It sounds like Graydust," Finchcry panted as they ran. Willowfeather winced as ran on her broken leg- she should never have come on patrol. It was too hard on her injured body.

"The attacks have started," Snowcloud gasped, when the screaming stopped.

"That either means Graydust won the fight," Willowfeather began, and broke off, not wanting to think about the other option.

"Or he lost," Snowcloud voiced her worst fears.

"No," Finchcry said determinedly. "He wouldn't have lost... he's a good warrior."

They saw fur tangled in thorns, clawmarks everywhere and a pool of blood nearby.

"I think Graydust won," Snowcloud said finally. "Or both of them were gravely injured."

Suddenly, there was a hiss. Behind a tree, Breezefur stood, teeth bared. Her side was stripped of fur, her claws bent, and her ear was nicked badly. She let out a final hiss, and ran.

"Hopefully, it means Graydust won?" Redpaw said, hopefully.

"No," Snowcloud said bluntly. "No."

The others whirled to where he was looking, and saw, half-hidden by a bush, a pale grey tabby body.

"Graydust," Willowfeather breathed. "He was too young to die."

"We've lost so many cats recently," Finchcry said, his voice cracking. "Darkshadow, Leafkit, Ambereye, and now Graydust. H-he had such a bright future ahead- he was a good warrior-"

"But it was all stolen from him," Willowfeather said flatly, trying to feel sadness for the lost warrior. "I suppose we need to take him back to camp."

She felt only emptiness inside. Of course, it was terrible that Graydust was dead- but he had killed Ambereye. He had kits with Breezefur. He was possibly the most disloyal cat in clan history.

"Graydust is dead," Snowcloud said finally. And they began the long walk back to camp, carrying Graydust's body with them.

**That took SO long for me to write. Sorry about the wait! I hope you enjoyed this chapter and hopefully, you'll see me soon, I don't know why it took so long even though the chapter wasn't that many words. Another dead cat though… am I killing off cats too quickly?**

**Don't forget to review!**


	23. A Decision to Make

**Sorry I haven't updated this story for a while! I was very behind in a few of my subjects at school but now that I've caught up with my assignments, I can start writing again. I really like writing this and I hope I will have more time to write more chapters in the future. We're nearly at thirty thousand words as well, this story has come so far in so little time!**

**Peaklog3727- yep, I know I'm being cruel, don't worry! But it'll get better, I promise. And for your question, the answer… will be revealed soon. Yes, I'm that evil.**

**Kuroimori- yes, I know… but I've been feeling particularly evil recently, so I can guarantee Graydust's death will not be the last.**

**Brambleflower- Well, sorry I killed him off then! But this won't be his last appearance in the story, though the next time he pops up you might be surprised. Spoiler!**

**Anyway, onto the story…**

Willowfeather looked up at the sky despairingly. Four days after Graydust's death, the clan was struggling more than ever. Redpaw and Cinderpaw we're nearing their warrior ceremony, but Sweetbreeze now had to train her dead brother's apprentice, struggled under the weight of two apprentices at two different levels of experience and to make things worse, Finchcry never left her alone. All in all, Willowfeather thought the young warrior was doing quite well.

"Hurry up!" Snowcloud barked at Wildwind, while Dustfoot screamed for Redpaw and Cinderpaw to hurry up and take prey to Dawnflower. Warriors were running low and tempers were running very, very high.

"Where did Shadestar go?" Willowfeather asked to Sweetbreeze, who was getting ready to take Lilypaw out for training.

"I think she went into her den," Sweetbreeze muttered, warming up her leg muscles.

"Dustfoot, Snowcloud and Finchcry, go on a hunting patrol. Apprentices, come with me and Sweetbreeze," Willowfeather mewed bossily.

"Can I go with you two instead of Dustfoot and Snowcloud?" Finchcry asked hopefully. Dustfoot swelled, no doubt getting ready to yell at Finchcry for abandoning his father for a she-cat.

"Sorry, but we can't spare warriors at the moment," Willowfeather said hastily, before Dustfoot could murder his naive, love-sick son. "Sunheart, Wildwind, stay in camp until we return, then go on a border patrol and keep an eye out for Breezefur or Mousetail's scent especially. Kestrelwing's, too. But we also need to keep an eye on ShadowClan and WindClan. And Dustfoot, could I talk to you for a moment?"

The dark brown tom padded over to Willowfeather. "What?" He asked. "We really don't have time to waste-"

"This will be a quick talk," Willowfeather interrupted. "This is about Finchcry. Surely you acted the same way with Wildwind? So you have to stop getting so angry at Finchcry. It's completely natural."

"Exactly," Said Wildwind from behind them, padding up. "I'll talk some sense into him. You can go if you'd like, Willowfeather."

After Graydust's death, there had been a fragile peace between the two sides, as if terror had driven them together. Ambereye, Graydust, Leafkit, Darkshadow, Goldberry and more… they had lost so many cats recently. If they continued losing cats at the pace they were, the clan would soon die out, especially under Shadestar's weak leadership.

**Nothing, nothing, nothing, nothing… and then something!**

"Tuck in your paws, Lilypaw!" Willowfeather instructed. She was teaching the younger apprentices how to climb trees on the edge of the training clearing, while Sweetbreeze and the older apprentices did advanced battle training in the middle. It was too risky to be wandering the territory alone, so they were sticking together.

_We can't walk through our territory without freaking out, _Willowfeather thought. _We can feel the pressure from the ShadowClan border, the whole clan is too nervous to walk through our own territory, our leader is the weakest in history and we have too few cats. We don't even have kits. And without kits, there is no future for the clan, especially considering we are losing so many cats._

As Willowfeather taught Lilypaw how to balance even without a tail, she realised that there weren't even any cats who _wanted _kits in the clan. Finchcry was too clingy for Sweetbreeze to even consider kits, and Wildwind didn't want any more kits.

"Let's get back to camp," Willowfeather said, her voice more panicked then she wanted it to be.

"Yes," Sweetbreeze meowed, as if she knew something would happen.

**When they reach the camp…**

"The hunting patrol got back already?" Willowfeather asked in shock.

"We went to the WindClan border to hunt, assuming that was the safest area of the territory, and we found a WindClan cat, saying she wanted to talk to Willowfeather. Her name was Waterwish," Finchcry said lazily, cozying up to Sweetbreeze, who immediately pretended to be nursing Cinderpaw's non-existent scratch.

"Waterwish?" Willowfeather asked, thinking mournfully about her WindClan friend. "Did she have kits with her?"

"Yes, just two," Sunheart replied this time. "But she said she had them early and she was weak. She said that her medicine cat had given up on her. And she needed to see Willowfeather. So I would go and see her if I were you. Who are you taking with you?"

"Snowcloud, is this true?" Willowfeather turned to the only cat on the patrol she could really trust. The tom nodded solemnly.

"_I'll _go with you because I'm the best warrior in the clan," Finchcry boasted, giving Sweetbreeze what he clearly thought was a winning smile. Sweetbreeze grimaced at him in return.

"Maybe Wildwind and Snowcloud, could you come with me instead." Willowfeather had chosen the two warriors carefully.

Snowcloud had gone on the patrol himself and he had seen Waterwish, while Wildwind, no matter how bitter she was, was the only warrior left who knew the pain that came with kits.

**Waterwish's Point of View**

Willowfeather _had _to come. Waterwish twitched at the border, itching to jump across the stones in the stream to get to Willowfeather.

No. Waterwish would never get through that.

It had been a struggle to even get out of the camp. Her kits no matter how beautiful they were, had left her weaker than a blind mouse. Surely, Willowfeather would arrive in time.

Yes! Willowfeather and two other cats came into view, Willowfeather breaking into a run when she spotted her.

"Willowfeather," Waterwish croaked. "Please, send those two away. I need to tell you something. In private."

"No, they are for the protection for both us and your kits. What do you want?" Willowfeather asked. "And are they your kits?" She nodded to Waterwish's two newborn kits, born only yesterday.

"Yes, they are my kits. But Willowfeather. I need you to take them," Waterwish begged. "I am weak now. Birdwing said it's only a matter of time before I join StarClan. But I will only be able to rest knowing my kits are safe."

Willowfeather looked at her sadly.

"As much as I want to have the kits, my lovely kits, near me when I die, I need to make the right decision for them," Waterwish said, every word a struggle. "And I want you to take them to ThunderClan."

**Back to Willowfeather!**

Snowcloud let out a gasp, while Wildwind took a few steps back. Willowfeather herself couldn't breathe.

"Take your kits? But they are WindClan!" She managed. "Surely there is a queen who will take them."

"I want them to grow up in ThunderClan," Waterwish pleaded, lifting up the two kits. One was frosty white, while the other was a pale, dappled grey. "The white is Frostkit. And the grey is Dapplekit- I am too tired to think of any other names. Please, Willowfeather. One last favour for your dying friend."

"N-no," Willowfeather stuttered. _What will my clan-mates say? I bet Wildwind is scornfully judging the kits right now. And the kits will never fully fit in._

"Please," Waterwish said, clearly fighting for air.

"I say we take them," Said a voice, and Willowfeather turned to Wildwind in surprise.

"I don't know Waterwish very well but we can't let her die knowing her kits don't have a proper home. And these kits- we can't leave them without their mother," Wildwind said softly. "I'm a mother too, Willowfeather. I know that's why you chose me for this patrol. And if I were dying, I would have given Finchcry the next best home in a heartbeat."

**I'm going to leave this on a cliffhanger… I know I'm evil… Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I have been slowing down in writing because of school but hopefully, you will see the next chapter very soon, and you won't ave to wait too long to find out whether Willowfeather will take Dapplekit and Frostkit!**

**Thanks so much for reading and don't forget to…**

**REVIEW!**


	24. Want to be Dark

**Chapter (goes back to check) 24 of 'Heart of the Willows'! Last chapter, we reached 30,000 words yay but don't worry, I won't annoy you again until this story reaches 50,000 words. The goal is to reach 50,000 words at all at the moment but if we do reach the goal, it might change. We'll see :)**

**Brambleflower- Yes, I know! Willowfeather acting like deputy when she **_**refused **_**to be one, Wildwind not being a brat, and Waterwish dying on the floor (The three 'w's made me really confused when I was writing…). And yes, Finchcry and Dustfoot are being jerks as usual. But life has no point without the mouse-brains. Thanks for the review and your encouragement! And yes, I know I'm evil… **

**Onto the story…**

"I don't think we should take them," Snowcloud said sullenly. "Yes, they're healthy kits, yes, they would be an asset, and yes, they need a home. No, they need a _good _home. And that home will be WindClan. We can't provide the protection for two newborn kits who need milk. We don't even have a nursing queen!"

"Yet," Wildwind argued.

"What?" Snowcloud looked around wildly. "Willowfeather wouldn't be having kits, so it must be you…"

"Sweetbreeze, you mouse-brain!" Wildwind slapped.

"But she hates Finchcry!" Willowfeather said, bewildered.

"Well, apparently not, considering she's having his kits. They're due in a moon," Wildwind revealed. "But how will we care for them before she has kits?"

"That's only assuming we will take these kits," Willowfeather grumped. "I make this final decision. Waterwish asked _me._"

"Well, maybe I should have asked Wildwind, considering she agrees with me," Waterwish mewed, panting with the effort of just staying upright. "Please, this stress brings me closer to my death and I still haven't found a home for these kits. Thistleheart doesn't want them, okay? Please!"

"How about she comes with us and feeds the kits for as long as she can, which might be a few days. And that's a few days to think of an idea," Wildwind suggested. "Sweetbreeze might start producing milk in a few weeks so it's not that much of a gap."

"But spending nearly a moon without milk might scar the kits for life," Willowfeather protested. "Say, Waterwish lasts for a week at most. And Sweetbreeze starts producing milk two weeks later. That's still two weeks without milk for the kits."

"Borage will help Sweetbreeze and Waterwish-" Wildwind began.

"_Sweetbreeze hasn't even agreed to this plan!_" Willowfeather exploded.

Waterwish caused a slight diversion by crumpling onto the edge of the river, her kits spilling into the water. Willowfeather, Wildwind and Snowcloud, united by panic, scooped up the queen and her kits and dragged her slowly back to camp. Even if the kits wouldn't stay at ThunderClan, they would stay _alive._

**At the camp…**

"Well, I'm happy to care for the kits," Sweetbreeze said mildly, taking a look at the two kits. Dapplekit's short fur and long legs made her a perfect runner, while Frostkit had long, silky fur that would be hard to camouflage. "They're healthy, strong, and they would be an asset for this clan. I don't see why I can't take them."

"You'll have to move to the nursery earlier, then," Sunheart pointed out. "I thought you said you wanted to keep going with your duties for as long as possible?"

"Hang on. How did everyone know except _me, _Sweetbreeze's _mentor_?" Willowfeather barked, feeling rather left out. She watched Spottedbird drag Waterwish away.

"That idiot couldn't stop himself from telling all of his friends," Sweetbreeze scorned, giving Sweetbreeze the iciest look Willowfeather had ever seen. "I can do this all myself, thank you."

"Wait a moment," Willowfeather interrupted. "You're planning to care for kits, be carrying kits yourself, carry out your duties, train two apprentices that know different things, keep an eye out for both Breezefur and ShadowClan, possibly fight in a war and cope with the fact that your brother just died and now you have to train his apprentice AT THE SAME TIME?"

"Obviously," Sweetbreeze said, looking unfazed. "I'm good with time management and dealing with stress."

"Oh," Spottedbird called from where she was treating Waterwish. "Shadestar said Sweetbreeze will be the next deputy."

"Alright, that's fine," Sweetbreeze said breezily, stretching out her legs.

As Willowfeather congratulated the new deputy, she hollowly thought about how she could help Sweetbreeze. The young she-cat acted confident but Willowfeather could see in her eyes a shadow, a spark of self-doubt. Perhaps it would be better for her to take over the training of Cinderpaw. One less apprentice was one less worry for the new deputy.

There wasn't much else that Willowfeather could do to make a difference.

**Nothing important…**

The night had fallen but cats were still wide awake. Spottedbird was awake, mixing a new poultice for Waterwish. Dustfoot stood guard at the entrance. Finchcry boasted about a fat squirrel he had caught the day before (it had been Redpaw, actually) while Wildwind and Sunheart pretended to listen. Sweetbreeze had long gone to sleep.

"What are we going to do?" Willowfeather breathed to Snowcloud. "What _can _we do?"

"I don't know," Snowcloud mewed, watching as the apprentices drowsily walked into their den. "How is Flamepaw doing?"

"He's doing well, but I can't do the usual hunting assignments because he can't be alone. How is Redpaw?" Willowfeather returned.

"Fine, but like you, I can't do all the assessments I would usually do. Breezefur, Mousetail and Kestrelwing have left their mark on the clan," Snowcloud answered dully. "Maybe I should fall asleep. It's the only time I feel like I'm truly safe."

"I think I will go to sleep," Willowfeather said, wondering if StarClan would visit Spottedbird and give them an answer any time soon. "Good night."

**Once she falls asleep…**

A mouse!

Willowfeather followed it eagerly. _I love hunting alone, _she thought, but then realized there was a smaller cat running beside her- Flamepaw! But Flamepaw slowly got bigger and bigger, until he was about the size of Snowcloud- no, it was Ambereye.

The amber-eyed StarClan cat stopped suddenly and Willowfeather halted to listen to what Ambereye had to say.

"Your clan has been going through trouble lately," Ambereye purred, her voice echoing in Willowfeather's mind. "But just remember this, and you'll be alright."

Another cat stepped out from the shadows, black and sleek. Darkshadow.

"I know from experience," Darkshadow said, her voice kind and motherly. "Shadows want to be dark, Willowfeather. Remember that, take that to heart, and surely you will survive this. Surely this _clan _will survive."

"Shadows are shadows," Ambereye said, her eyes glittering with kindness and wisdom. "And light is light. But shadows always want to be dark."

And with that, Willowfeather woke to morning sunshine.

**This chapter was a bit on the shorter side (it barely made it past 1000 words) but not all chapters can be the lengthy, bulky ones, can they? Also, do you think I can manage more than one fanfiction at one time? **

**Thanks so much for reading this chapter, and I hope that you don't have to wait too long before the next chapter comes out. But in the meantime, please review!**


	25. The Importance of Listening

**Finally, Chapter 25! I'm really excited about that- we're at a quarter of 100 chapters! I recently spotted another mistake- I switched Cinderpaw and Redpaw's mentors! In chapter 17 it said Cinderpaw was Snowcloud's apprentice and Redpaw's mentor was Graydust, but they mysteriously switched.. Well, let's just say Cinderpaw was always Graydust's apprentice and Redpaw was always Snowcloud's. Sorry about that! Ugh, so many plot holes in this story... But I'm doing my best!**

**Kuroimori- I know I'm evil… but I'm feeling less evil so maybe it'll get better sometime soon? Fingers crossed…**

**Peaklog3727- I can't say exactly what Sweetbreeze will do but for one, I'm sure you remember what happened to the previous deputies and two, keep in mind Sweetbreeze has a lot of responsibility so it might not be too long before she cracks…**

**WildKat12- I agree with you! The only reason Waterwish was added was so that Waterwish could chuck the kits at ThunderClan. And I reveal the most about the story here so yes, it is a good idea to read here… And thank you so much for your kind words!**

**Without anymore rambling, let's just get into the chapter…**

_Shadows and shadows, and light is light._

_Shadows always want to be dark._

Willowfeather remembered last night's dream. It was only morning- Sweetbreeze hadn't even assigned patrols yet- but she was itching to get back to sleep again. She needed to ask Ambereye and Darkshadow what they meant!

"What did you mean, Ambereye? Could you explain, Darkshadow?" She asked softly.

"Ambereye and Darkshadow?" Flamepaw asked from behind Willowfeather, and his mentor jumped in surprise. "Sweetbreeze says you can take over the training of Cinderpaw. She also said she needs you to take Lilypaw out _too, _because she's busy trying to make a deal with Waterwish. Snowcloud will go out with us."

"Alright," Willowfeather walked out of her nest and picked a stale mouse- the only item on the fresh-kill pile. She ate it quickly. "Let's go hunt, maybe," She suggested.

"I wanted to do battle training," Flamepaw responded as Willowfeather's new apprentice bounded over with Lilypaw, Snowcloud and Redpaw.

"The clan's _needs _are more important than your _wants. _You listen to your mentor. I have two apprentices to manage now, you realize," Willowfeather snapped. "I have less time to focus on both of you. I'll try my best. Snowcloud can help today, as well. But I beg you, please try to be a little bit kinder to both of us."

**In the forest…**

"Usually, splitting up is a much easier way to hunt," Willowfeather sighed. "But Breezefur put a stop to walking alone. Maybe we should go and hunt near the Twoleg home. The clearing is always rich in prey and it's bare enough for all of us to see each other."

**At the Twoleg Home**

There was a large stone beside the Twoleg home, right near where Leafkit had lost his life. Where the badger had murdered him.

Cinderpaw and Redpaw both seemed a little shaky, and they hunted clumsily. Cinderpaw allowed a mouse to escape through her paws, while Redpaw alerted a squirrel by accidentally stepping on a stick. Lilypaw and Flamepaw actually didn't do much better- Flamepaw seemed slow and he complained about a cough, while Lilypaw lacked a tail and her balance was so off she didn't catch anything. The area was fine, though, it seemed- Snowcloud successfully took down a rabbit, rare in the woods,while Willowfeather caught three whole mouse, practically a feast for the tiny clan.

"It's like you forgot all of your training!" Willowfeather scolded to Lilypaw, Cinderpaw and Flamepaw, the apprentices she was in charge of. "Lilypaw, you've been taught how to control your balance without your tail, and Flamepaw, you're not that heavy, how were you so slow?"

"I just feel sick, that's all," Flamepaw protested. "I'll get checked by Spottedbird when we get back to camp."

"And I'm just spooked because this is the place Leafkit died, that's all," Cinderpaw explained, clearly eager to get out of trouble. "It's one of my first times- Graydust was kind enough to keep me away from here until his death."

"And _I _was just having an off day," Lilypaw jumped in. "We're all sorry."

"Well, I suppose as long as you don't keep this behaviour up, we'll be fine. Let's go back, it's about sun-high. Sweetbreeze will want to reassign patrols."

**When they get back…**

"Spottedbird says this might be a touch of whitecough," Flamepaw said uncertainly a few hours later. "Apparently I'm not allowed to go out for three sunrises, and then she'll give me a final check and see if I can go out."

"That's not good," Willowfeather admitted. "But you're healthy and young. You'll be back on your feet in no time- my concern is that you might pass it to Shadestar, Dawnflower or Sweetbreeze. Try to keep away from others to lessen the chances of sickness reaching our leader. At least I can focus on Cinderpaw for once."

"At least we have a deputy now," Flamepaw offered. "We have someone who can become leader when Shadestar passes away."

"If only Ambereye had never died," Willowfeather mourned, thinking about her friend, before the message came back into her head. "She would have been a great leader," She added quickly, before she could accidentally reveal the dream.  
"Maybe," Flamepaw conceded. "When I was a kit, just a newborn, Shadestar was so strong. Lilykit used to pretend to be her. But then she was poisoned and she hasn't been the same since. I _hate _it. Most apprentices are concerned about warrior names, a she-cat or tom they have their eyes on, or something. _I'm _concerned about my leader's _life_."

_Poor Flamepaw, _Willowfeather thought. _But surely, he's happy because the lack of deputies and weak leader paves a way for his leadership._

"But doesn't that make it easier for you to become deputy?" She ventured, trying to test his loyalty. _Is he willing to get rid of say, Sweetbreeze, to 'serve' his clan_?

"Maybe," He responded. "I won't be doing anything with this cursed Whitecough, though, but Sweetbreeze is a queen about to have kits…"

What?

Was he waiting until the kits were born to kill of Sweetbreeze because the kits had potential?

"What do you think of Waterwish's kits?" She asked hurriedly, in a rush to find a new subject.

"Frostkit and Dapplekit? Dapplekit is strong and sturdy, unlike most WindClan cats," Flamepaw mewed. "And Frostkit has the long legs of most WindClan cats. They will both hopefully grow to be strong warriors. This might sound horrible, but we need to think about replacing our fallen warriors."

**Two days later…**

Flamepaw's whitecough quickly developed into greencough, and spread to Finchcry, Dawnflower and worst of all, Sweetbreeze. Luckily, the young queen was in great condition, nearly ready to get on patrols again, but Spottedbird wanted her to stay back. She needed all of her strength that was possible for her kitting, which was only three weeks away, and Spottedbird said it was even possible that the kits would come a week early, Sweetbreeze's belly was so big. While most queens became unnaturally crabby when they were expecting kits, Sweetbreeze was kinder than ever and she even accepted Finchcry's everlasting boasting.

"Having kits are great of course," Sweetbreeze said animatedly to Willowfeather, disobeying another one of Spottedbird's rules. Sweetbreeze was supposed to be alone and resting all day, but was the young queen going to listen? No way. In fact, Finchcry was the only one really paying attention to the rules- perhaps his quietness was what made him so bearable to Sweetbreeze.

"If I'm going to have kits with that tom, I might as well be agreeable about it," She said matter-of-factly, as she tucked into a juicy vole. "He can be a bit annoying at times, but he's got a relatively good heart, doesn't he?"

"Personally, I've never seen that relatively good heart before," Willowfeather grumbled. "And he hates me. He's only civil because he likes you."

"Like, not love," Sweetbreeze said simply. "Honestly, at the moment, I feel like the whole world is wrong for all of us. I'm bringing kits into the world that weren't made by love, like all kits should be, and our leader is weak. We don't feel safe in our own territory and one of the clans on our borders despises us. We've taken in a dying queen and her young kits. Yet life goes on. Because StarClan knows how we will go."

"Not necessarily," Willowfeather returned carefully. _How do I warn Sweetbreeeze about the future dangers without telling her about my dream?_ "Those trees' shadows… don't they scare you?" She ventured, testing the waters.

"When I was an apprentice, I was terrified that anything could hide in the shadows," Sweetbreeze answered, her voice distant.

"But shadows are shadows," Willowfeather began.

"Yes, shadows are shadows," Sweetbreeze agreed, grooming her fur. "My mother used to tell me, shadows are shadows and they are nothing to be scared of. Just stay in the light."

Willowfeather blinked- that was exactly what Ambereye and Darkshadow had said!

"That was moons ago, of course. _Seasons. _I barely remember my mother now, or any of my family, really. I've even lost Graydust, who I always thought, annoying as he was, would always be there. I'm alone, now. It's up to _me _to keep my family's legacy alive."

Willowfeather blinked.

"My family believed that reputation lives forever, even if lives don't. That service is the most important thing in the world. I don't know if I agree, but I will teach my kits that if it's the last thing I do. We will truly be disgraced when the line dies out. Maybe my ancestors are waiting for the moment the last of us dies to punish everyone," Sweetbreeze said softly, slight bitterness creeping into her voice.

"And you never told me?" Willowfeather asked in surprise.

"That isn't included as part of our _honourable heritage._ My ancestors were stern about the rules on both sides. My parents weren't in _love. _The only thing I remember about them is that they had kits to continue their legacy and because of their families' similar rules. T-that's why-" Sweetbreeze's voice broke. "That's why if I ever had kits, I wanted to have them with a loving mate. Because I learnt the hard way that not every kithood is a fantasy, and because my kits deserved better. But I broke my own promise to myself."

Sweetbreeze seemed to have been pushing down her feelings for a long time, and she was explaining it all to herself rather than explaining to Willowfeather. But Willowfeather knew that when it came to horrible feelings, it was easier to let the feelings come out, no matter how painful they were.

Sweetbreeze let out a low wail. "Now I have to have kits with a cat I can barely stand! I've had self-control until now- I've made sure to be polite to everyone, do my best in my duties, to mourn Graydust without getting distracted. But I'm so selfish I've let my own life take over when I should be focusing on trying to let Graydust go!"

She gave Willowfeather a wild, drunk look, drowned in her pain. Sweetbreeze was no longer the calm, controlled queen from twenty minutes ago.

"I-I-" She broke off and raced into the Warriors Den.

Left behind, Willowfeather realized her life wasn't the only horrible one.

And for the first time, she thought about how her life- not only hers, but others' lives as well- could be improved if she just learned to listen.

**What did you think of this chapter? It was a bit on the longer side and I think it was a bit of a filler, though I think the last part was dramatic enough and I tried not to leave it on a terrible cliff-hanger.**

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter and don't forget to review!**


	26. ShadowClan Troubles

**Chapter 26 is upon us! Thank you for all of your kind reviews! I have (unfortunately? Fortunately?) more time to write because I am in self-isolation, and I'm so sorry to everyone who has been affected by the virus, whether it's self-isolation, you or people you know have been diagnosed with it or you have lost someone to the virus. But nothing bad lasts forever and humanity will get over this, like we got over the spanish flu, the black death, SARS, MERS and all the other viruses and illnesses humanity has struggled through. Anyway… **

**Brambleflower- thank you so much! And yes, so many Ws, I got confused halfway through chapter 24. I'm glad you liked the chapter and thank you for believing in Sweetbreeze! It's clear to see how much you *cough cough* love Finchcry. But Finchcry really is a jerk, I'm glad someone agrees with me…**

**Anyway, onto the chapter!**

Willowfeather sat there, thinking. _Sweetbreeze is cracking under the pressure, _she thought anxiously. _But at least Finchcry is leaving her alone._

"Willowfeather!" Sweetbreeze called, stumbling out of the warriors den. She seemed to have recovered in the past few minutes. Her eyes were back to normal and her voice was clear, though she seemed slightly unbalanced. "Gather two warriors, and go on the WindClan border, I already sent one out to ShadowClan and they'll return any moment now-"

Just as Sweetbreeze finished her sentence, Sunheart came sprinting into the camp.

"I had to run through myself- nearly all of ShadowClan's forces ambushed us. Wildwind and Dustfoot are fighting them right now, but we need backup! They attacked right when we have the least warriors," He gasped.

"Snowcloud, Willowfeather, Redpaw and Cinderpaw, go with him to back them up. Finchcry, Lilypaw and I will do what we can to guard the camp. Is there anyone else who's strong here?" Sweetbreeze asked, looking around frantically.

"Me!" Flamepaw squawked.

"No, not you! One, you have greencough, two, you're a less experienced apprentice!" Sweetbreeze snarled.

"I will help," Dawnflower said, her coat hanging off her bones. "I may look old, but I am not that old. I am younger than most of ShadowClan's senior warriors. Yes, I dislike fighting for no cause but I have no trouble with defending the home I have lived in for moons."

"Alright, you can defend the camp with us," Sweetbreeze said frantically.

"Um, Sweetbreeze, I don't know if you remember, but I've got a broken leg," Willowfeather pointed out nervously. "It's been healing so I can hunt, but I'm not healed enough to dive into an already impossible battle. Five warriors versus nearly all of ShadowClan's forces? This is a death wish!"

When they arrived, Willowfeather realized it wasn't a death wish. It was just death.

Dustfoot cowered in a tree, trying to fight while balancing on a spindly tree branch, while Wildwind was hauling cats off herself.

"We're here!" Sunheart screamed, diving immediately into the battle. He launched himself at Dustfoot's tree to save his clanmate, while the others launched into their own battles. Willowfeather clashed against two ShadowClan cats, a she-cat and a tom, who were sneakily stalking away toward the camp.

"You are _not _reaching the camp!" She yowled as he claws raked the pelt of one cat and her ferocious teeth bit down on the paw of the other.

"_This _is what you call backup?" The she-cat smirked, kicking Willowfeather away. "I should hope for better competition. Five cats versus all of us! Claiming this territory will be easier than we thought. And we know there is greencough in your camp, we overheard one of your patrols talking. So the only defences in this clan must be you five."

"There are warriors in camp, even if they are weakened," Willowfeather said bravely, recognizing the she-cat as Bluebird and the tom as Poisonfang. "By the way, Bluebird, you are in no position to boast. Are you a senior warrior now? Well done. It doesn't change the fact that I've beaten you before. And I will beat you again."

"Oh, I don't think so. Look at your puny defences, even worse than before! Our clan has only grown- we have _four _new warriors now and we outnumbered you, even before. We will _not _accept defeat again!" Bluebird yowled.

Willowfeather's paw flashed out, clawing into Bluebird's neck. Her broken leg forgotten, Willowfeather found new strength and ripped the ShadowClan warrior's fur from her body, while keeping Poisonfang at bay with her back legs. Willowfeather hurled Bluebird away from her and turned to bite into Poisonfang's tail fiercely. Adrenaline pumped in her blood and anger ripped through her body. Poisonfang managed to score a scratch in Willowfeather's broken leg, weakening it further, but Willowfeather retaliated by hitting him as hard as she possibly could with both of her front paws. The tom was sent sprawling and when the two cats ran yowling back into the muddle of cats, Willowfeather turned and searched for a new victim- aha! A few apprentices and a small warrior, clearly one of the new ones, hung at the back of the battle, looking nervously at the blood.

Willowfeather bunched her powerful muscles, mostly powered by her adrenaline, and pushed back the exhaustion blurring the edges of her vision. _This is not the time to be distracted, _she thought, pushing off and launched herself at the apprentices. The warrior looked in horror as the apprentices, a young tom named Screechpaw and a she-cat named Nightpaw, crumpled easily under Willowfeather's weight.

"Look, I don't want to hurt you but the fact is, I have to," Willowfeather snarled menacingly. "I could defeat all three of you with a swipe of my claws. I specially sharpened them for you."

"You wouldn't have seen us coming," The warrior said meekly, trying to sound brave.

"Oh, but I did," Willowfeather purred in mock pity, though every word coming out of her mouth was a lie.

"Please, let me go," Nightpaw begged. "I don't want to sound disloyal, but I never wanted to fight. Friendly, peaceful neighbours are always better than aggressive ones ready to fight. But my mentor dismisses me as a young idiot. Please, just let us keep our lives. You couldn't watch youth die, could you?"

"I've witnessed a five moon kit suffer a much more honourable death than you," Willowfeather mewed, her claws digging tighter. "You saying I can't watch youth die is an insult to Leafkit's memory because I _have _seen a kit die. But maybe you are right. Maybe I have feelings, unlike your clan."

"ShadowClan is honourable," Nightpaw hissed, suddenly defiant. "I don't know who Leafkit was, but he did not die because of ShadowClan. We follow the code."

"No!" Willowfeather argued, feeling like a useless nursery kit arguing with their littermate. "The code specifically says to serve the elders, kits and nursing queens. Yet your clan murdered our deputy in our last battle. And she had two young kits, a loving mate and all of her life yet to come. Cut short by _your _clan."

Nightpaw's eyes glittered with clear shock, but Screechpaw looked at Willowfeather with narrowed eyes.

"Every war has a casualty. Now let us go."

Willowfeather let Nightpaw go free, and gave Screechpaw a huge mark on his shoulder.

"Remember me," Willowfeather hissed. "I hope you have learnt your lesson. Every life is worth saving."

Willowfeather swept him a final glare and galloped back into the battle, sincerely hoping that he had learnt his lesson.

An hour later, the ThunderClan cats had chased off many cats but they were all the same bloody, bruised and practically furless cats. They all looked the same, they were all so heavily injured. But they didn't stop.

None of them did.

When the first shrieks came from the camp, announcing that some cats had broken through their guard, Dustfoot, Cinderpaw, Redpaw and Snowcloud went back to help the camp protect it's weakest, leaving Willowfeather, Sunheart and Wildwind to battle half a clan alone. Sunheart, his fur stained red, one eye swollen shut and every claw wrenched, blindly whirled through the battle, slicing every cat nearby, while Wildwind, with a streaming cut that went from her muzzle down to her tail and an entire ear missing, lashed out at five different cats at once. Willowfeather's already injured leg had been broken in about five more places, three of her teeth had fallen out and she couldn't see, there was so much blood streaming out from a cut just above her eyes. She had the job of chasing cats away.

Eventually, they chased the final cats away and they slumped into a pile on top of each other in the middle of the battleground. A dead cat- Poisonfang- lay a few fox-lengths away, but they ignored him. Wildwind had passed out from blood loss, while Sunheart's legs gave way to tiredness and he slumped to the ground, barely conscious. Willowfeather wanted to follow suit, but she knew Wildwind would die. The she-cat had been horrible to her at times, but recently she had been a lot more bearable. _Marigold or horsetail to stop infection, dock leaf to clean up the wound and cobweb to stop the bleeding, _she thought dizzily as she limped into the forest. Spotting a growth of horsetail near a tree, she took the horsetail, found some cobweb, and felt too tired to look for the dock. Limping slowly back to Wildwind, she felt relieved all apprentices spent a few days learning from the medicine cat. _I might hate Kestrelwing, but he taught me this, _she thought, when she spotted a plant of juniper berries. _For strength. _

**When she gets back to Wildwind…**

The poor she-cat was in worse condition than Willowfeather had originally thought. The wound was still streaming blood and Sunheart was trying to stop the blood loss, looking wide awake all of a sudden.

"Kestrelwing said to put all the weight you can on it, right?" He questioned as she put down the herbs. "Ah, horsetail and cobweb."

Wordlessly, Willowfeather began to chew up the horsetail at the same time as dripping juniper berries into Wildwind's open mouth. After several minutes, the horsetail poultice was done and Sunheart quickly applied it, before Willowfeather stretched cobweb over Wildwind's injury.

"We need to get her back to camp where Spottedbird can care for her," Willowfeather said, watching a ShadowClan cat run past, fleeing from the camp.

**When they get to camp…**

"All three of you! You're as bad as Snowcloud, Dawnflower, Finchcry and Dustfoot!" Spottedbird said in horror. "Redpaw came back mauled as well, and Cinderpaw. All of you! Into the medicine den!"

Nearly every cat in the clan was squeezed into the den, and all of the cats were in critical condition. Willowfeather's injuries were bad, but she wasn't about to die, really. Sure, her jaw ached, she could barely walk and her cuts weren't great, but she wasn't as badly injured as the other cats.

"Spottedbird, if you could treat me quickly, I'll go to my den to get sleep and get out of your way," Sunheart offered, clearly thinking along the same lines as Willowfeather.

"Me too," Willowfeather added quickly.

"I'll check the blood isn't yours, make a quick cast for your leg, Willowfeather, and then you two can get out of the den. I'll give you poppy seeds, too."

They were released a few moments later, after being told to get some rest and receiving two poppy seeds each. Swallowing the tiny seeds, Willowfeather sat down drowsily in her nest. Suddenly, as sleep started threatening to overcome her, she heard something. Stomping. She snuck out through to the dirtplace and heard the horrible sound.

A patrol was coming their way.

Tears threatened to bubble up. _It was a trick. ShadowClan weakened us and now they will attack us with their most senior warriors, who did not take part in the first attack. Of course._

Breaths coming up short, she ran back to the camp.

"ShadowClan is coming back!"

**What did you think of that chapter? I thought it was okay myself… sorry about the cliffie!**

**Anyway, I hope I can update this story soon enough and in the meanwhile, don't forget to REVIEW!**

**Review**

**Review**

**Please**

**Review!**


	27. Dapples in the Clouds

**Chapter 27, yay!**

**Crystalshine Of LightClan- Thanks so much! There have been a few times where I have had to go back and edit my chapters because I kept writing 'Swiftbreeze' instead of 'Sweetbreeze'. Yes, Sweetbreeze is one of my favourites, too, though I miss writing about Ambereye. **

**Brambleflower- you've reviewed nearly every single chapter I write, thanks so much! I've tried to write Flamepaw so that he can be a bit of everything- the ambitious evil cat, the eager apprentice, the loyal worshipper of StarClan… I don't know how all of those cats are going to work swirled into one, but I hope it works right, haha. And yes, I just really **_**love **_**Finchcry… Thank you for your kind words!**

**Kuroimori- Yes, I know! ShadowClan is horrible... and just as Wildwind was getting nicer... but will she die is another question entirely (hint hint)... thank you for your kind reviews! Wildwind has a fifty fifty chance of dying or staying alive, I'm still trying to decide because she isn't going to be the most important cat in the future (all of her important parts can be replaced by Dustfoot but not Finchcry... because of something else that will happen... another huge hint).**

**Anyway, let's get into it…**

Spottedbird poked her head out in panic.

"I really need to get myself an apprentice," She muttered, seemingly blaming _herself _for all of the troubles.. "But I won't survive to get myself an apprentice if you're right. Is this ShadowClan?"

The footsteps got louder, clearly not disguising themselves.

"But is ShadowClan this noisy?" Sunheart asked, crawling tiredly out of the warriors den. "I will fight. Ugh, at least I got a few heartbeats of sleep."

"I didn't get any," Willowfeather said, fighting back the exhaustion that came from the poppy seeds and failing miserably. "But- oh-"

She gave in to the poppy seeds and was asleep, snoring slightly, before she hit the floor.

"The cats will arrive in less than ten minutes. Give her a few blinks of sleep and try to wake her," Spottedbird instructed, going back in to treat more cats before the invaders came. Sunheart waited a few heartbeats, bashed Willowfeather in the broken leg and Willowfeather woke with a loud scream, and the footsteps stopped suddenly. A hush fell across the camp (considering it was only Sunheart and Willowfeather in the camp at the moment and they weren't exactly on speaking terms, it was pretty quiet anyway).

Willowfeather looked around wildly for an excuse. "Ah! Sorry, I thought that was a snake. It's an ivy tendril," She loudly said, trying to keep the hastiness from her voice. The footsteps started out again, frantic and fast.

"I think it's about three cats, or maybe two," Sunheart observed tightly. "But ShadowClan won't be this loud. I don't think this is ShadowClan, it's someone else. Someone we don't know. But that terrifies me."

They all waited with bated breath as the footsteps echoed louder and louder, as the cats got closer and closer.

"I think it's through here," A high female voice said nervously from the bramble entrance, sounding tired. It wasn't the voice of anyone Willowfeather knew. "I swear, I heard a female cat down here. She probably has a home here. You know I need help, and quickly. We're both tired, restless and looking for a home."

A tom's voice answered her. "I know, you need help. Come on, hurry."

A heavily pregnant brown tabby with a sweet face and white splotches came into view, followed by a softly dappled grey tom-cat.

"There's more than one cat here!" The tabby said in surprise, blinking at the two heavily injured clanmates in the camp. "Who are you? What's wrong with you?"

"Darling, maybe be a bit more polite to strangers," The tom said nervously, but he eyed their wounds nervously.

"Welcome to ThunderClan," Sweetbreeze said formally, coming out of the nursery. "My name is Sweetbreeze, and I am the deputy of this clan or the cat who helps the leader."

"ThunderClan!" The tabby looked relieved. "My name is Cloud, and this is Dapple. My mother had a friend, and her friend's mother knew a cat called Millie. Millie ran away with some weird cat called Graystripe, in search of ThunderClan. And when our housefolk abused us and threw us out, we decided you were our only hope."

"Cloud and Dapple," Sweetbreeze said slowly, letting the names slowly roll off her tongue. "I know what it means to be a queen with a troubled life. I will grant you stay until you kit. And then your stay will be up to Shadestar."

"What happened to Graystripe's friend, Firestar?" Dapple interrupted. "He sounded great."

"He's long dead!" Sweetbreeze snarled. "If you are going to take advantage of our hospitality, you can walk out of here and get off our territory _now. _My warriors and I have been in a battle but we have enough strength to chase you out."

"We're sorry," Cloud said quickly, giving Dapple a shove."We have travelled a long way and we hope for rest."

"You can stay, for a little while," Sweetbreeze said, her eyes narrowed. "When do you think you will kit?"

"I am less than two weeks away from kitting," Cloud said solemnly. "I should kit before you, at least. This is why I need somewhere to stay. If I kit while travelling, I think my kits will die."

Dapple looked around shiftily, taking in all of the camp. At first glance, he had seemed so polite, so kind, so handsome- better than Sunheart had been, at least. But now, Willowfeather realized he wasn't the great tom he had seemed to be at first. _Stop. He is a guest. He will be treated politely, without accusation, and you will stop thinking about him as if he is a criminal. You will also stop thinking in second person. Alright, thank you. I mean, me. Thank me._

She sat up straighter. She would do everything possible to make Dapple and Cloud feel welcome. To fit in.

She still couldn't shake the feeling of mistrust. Dapple gave her a fierce glare, informing her that the feeling was mutual.

**This chapter is short, a filler and one of the worst ones I have written, I feel. But I barely slept yesterday and now I need to hurry up and get a chapter up, so I'm tired and rushing to finish this chapter. Sorry about that. And I haven't read the manga series so I have no idea what happened with Graystripe and Millie. Ah well. I hope this makes enough sense.**

**But don't forget to review, and hopefully I will be able to write a better next chapter!**

**REVIEW!**


	28. Traitors

**Chapter 28, whippee! I hope you guys are all enjoying this story so far. Unfortunately I've slowly started losing motivation again but I've been doing everything I can to keep it up, though you can expect chapters to start slowing down. I will keep updating this story though, you can count on that (well, it might slowly stop but I will do everything in my power to keep going).**

**Anyway-**

**Kuroimori- 'temporary'. But you might be surprised, because one or both of them will be **_**temporary, **_**it's just a matter of when they will leave…**

**Brambleflower- yes, these cats are only a few generations away from Firestar (Cloud's mother's friend's mother knew, Millie, but Cloud and Dapple are slightly older- maybe the generation before Willowfeather and her 'team'. They're about the age of Shadestar and Dawnflower, past their prime but not dead yet). Yes, the plan is to get Spottedbird an apprentice and I'm glad I'm not the only one who doesn't trust Dapple...**

**WildKat12- I considered making Sweetbreeze die, but she is too important in the story. She's one of the most important supporting characters, after all! Speaking of supporting characters, recently, **_**Wildwind **_**has had more lines than Sunheart, so I'll be fixing that… and thank you for such kind words! Your words have given me more motivation to update this story quickly, so that you have something interesting to read during these long, empty days.**

**Finchpetal Girl- Thank you so much! You said you couldn't wait to read more? Well, then here's some more for you. This is at the lake because yes the forest was destroyed, sorry if I haven't described it well. But SkyClan never came. It's just the four clans, living not-so-peacefully next to each other.**

**Anyway, onto the story…**

"Hello," Cloud said warmly, spread out on the ground and tucking into one of the few pieces of fresh-kill. "Thank you so much for letting us stay, at least for a little while. I thought this clan would be bigger, though. Forgive me for being nosy, but are there any other cats here?"

"We just had a battle," Willowfeather said apologetically, swiping a paw over the cut near her eyes. She looked back and saw Dapple- who for some reason, had begun to look somewhat familiar. "Sunheart, Sweetbreeze and myself were the least injured, along with Lilypaw and Flamepaw. The apprentices are asleep at the moment, while the other cats in our clan are being cared for by Spottedbird. She's our medicine cat."

"The healer, isn't she?" Cloud nodded vigorously. "The doctor, as twolegs call them."

"Yes, the healer. We call them medicine cats. Do you want me to show you the nursery?" Willowfeather's voice was light and inviting, yet Cloud's eyes darkened.

"Kits," She hissed. "I suppose the queen- did you say her name was Sweetbreeze- is _happy _to have kits?"

"I suppose so," Willowfeather said, surprised. She wasn't really sure. On one claw, Sweetbreeze hated Finchcry, didn't like being cooped up all day, already had Waterwish's kits to care for-

"Waterwish! How is she doing?" Willowfeather said suddenly, sprinting to the medicine den. However, though she was quick, she noticed darkness and anger smouldering in Cloud's eyes. _She's bitter about something, _she thought quickly, _and it was because we started talking about kits._

As she ran swiftly to the nursery to visit Waterwish for possibly the last time, her thoughts buzzed with things that were too nosy to say out loud.

**A little bit of nothingness and then…**

Waterwish was slowly growing weaker and weaker, and there was nothing Willowfeather could do about it, besides watch and comfort Waterwish.

"H-how are F-frost kit and Dapplekit?" The young queen mumbled, as Willowfeather thought about all the non-ThunderClan cats they had brought in. _Waterwish and her kits. Dapple and Cloud. Cloud's kits._

"They're doing great, but they need milk," Willowfeather soothed. "How are you doing?"

"Spottedbird makes me eat a lot of herbs everyday- borage to help my milk come, juniper berry for strength, tansy to fight off fever that sometimes hits me…" Waterwish trailed off. "It's none of your business, anyway. You forgot about me when you brought me here, so why don't you just forget about useless old me again?"

"What do you mean?" Willowfeather asked, puzzled. "I never forgot about you. I've just been… busy."

"With a ShadowClan attack, two rogues joining ThunderClan, a few grumpy apprentices and a couple of injuries," Waterwish recited. "Isn't that normal for ThunderClan? And I _am _useless. I couldn't even help at all in the ShadowClan attack. All I could do was keep Sweetbreeze in the nursery."

"Ah, I was wondering how in StarClan she wasn't injured badly in such an attack in her… delicate condition," Willowfeather mewed. "That isn't useless at all! You saved our clan deputy!"

"But I'm dying, _literally _dying, and my own condition isn't getting any better. It'll be a miracle if I see the next sunrise, to be honest," Waterwish sighed. "I'm in a lot of pain, and most medicine cats would have given deathberries with permission, of course, to someone like me. But the thing is, I have to stay alive for as long as possible until Sweetbreeze's kits are born-"

"Of course!" Willowfeather jumped up. "_Cloud _can nurse your kits!"

"I- I don't really like her mate," Waterwish stammered. "I thought of that, too. And what's kept me alive all this time is the fact I desperately want to keep Frostkit and Dapplekit away from Cloud. You don't know about the duties of a mother. And as their mother, no matter how much pain I am in, I owe Frostkit and Dapplekit to give them the best possible home besides myself, and that is Sweetbreeze."

"Why?" Willowfeather blurted out. "Cloud is only a young she-cat expecting kits and Dapple might seem… _stiff, _but he's just lacking in social skills, that's all."

Waterwish looked at Cloud darkly from the safety of the nursery.

"I saw Dapple and Cloud talking with this scrawny brown tom a while ago, and the tom was accompanied by who I think used to be your medicine cat, and a rusty brown she-cat."

_A scrawny brown tom, a cat who used to be our medicine cat and a rusty brown she-cat, _Willowfeather thought. Scrawny brown tom, and a rusty-brown she-cat? Those were two very vague descriptions. But _a cat who used to be our medicine cat._

Kestrelwing.

_Kestrelwing._

_Cloud and Dapple are in league with Kestrelwing, Mousetail and Breezefur, of course._

And an old memory dawned in Willowfeather's brain. The way Shadestar lost her second last life. A rogue nobody listened had tried to kill Cinderpaw and Redpaw. She hadn't seen him or her, but he had grey dappled fur and…

He looked just like Dapple.

_Who are they? And what do they want?_

**How do you think I did? I started a new story (Can You Hear the Dawn?) that occurs a lot later than this story but is the same clan just later on.**

**Anyway, thanks for reading and don't forget to come back on the day it says I will update next in the description, also…**

**REVIEW!**


	29. Dapple Problems

**Chapter 29… I'm so proud of my story! Thank you all for being so kind and also, last chapter I said 'nobody listened had tried to kill Cinderpaw and Redpaw' but I actually meant nobody **_**recognized, **_**sorry about that!**

**Brambleflower- Thank you for your many reviews! As for your question about Waterwish, she will stay in ThunderClan for **_**most **_**of her life now, though she will be forced to leave for a while (I won't tell you who forces her to leave for a while because I'm back to feeling really evil) and I won't tell you** _**exactly **_**whether Cloud was forced to have kits but she doesn't want them, definitely… thanks for your encouragement! Make sure you stay safe and amazing too!**

**Anyway, hopefully you enjoy this chapter!**

Willowfeather took a secret look at Cloud, hoping she would recognize her from somewhere.

"Don't you… feel like you've seen Cloud and Dapple before?" Willowfeather asked to Redpaw- after all, the stranger had tried to kill him.

"Not Cloud," Redpaw replied, flicking his ears. "But Dapple, he… he tried to…"

He gave her a terrified glance, as if it was illegal to say what Dapple did aloud.

"I thought they looked familiar," Willowfeather whispered, but she didn't push the topic any further. _I don't want to risk the lives of anyone else anymore, _she thought. _But at least now I know Dapple is most likely in league with the traitors._

The Traitors. That had a nice ring to it and fit the group of cats well. _A perfect name for a less than perfect group of cats, _Willowfeather scowled. _Well, I might as well go and talk to Cloud. She clearly doesn't want the kits._

"Hello, Cloud," Willowfeather said nervously. "Sorry I ran off- I just remembered I needed to do something."

"It's fine," Cloud said cheerily, but darkness still smouldered in her eyes- she was clearly hiding something.

"Why are you so upset?" Willowfeather asked carefully- she needed to play her cards right. "Don't you want kits?"

"When I was younger, I used to love kits," Cloud said just as carefully, as if making sure she didn't reveal too much. "I still like them but I don't want this litter. It's my second litter, you see, and my first litter didn't do too well."

"What happened to them?" Willowfeather asked gently, suddenly forgetting her whole mission in her sympathy.

"I had two kits," Cloud whispered. "I loved them so much but they were born in leaf-bare. One froze to death only a moon after birth. My other kit died of starvation a moon after that. Well, uh, bye."

Willowfeather blinked in surprise. _She's being forced to do something, _she thought. As Cloud had nervously gone into the nursery with Dapple, Willowfeather hid herself behind the nursery.

A while later, she was certain Cloud wasn't doing anything of interest. _Such a waste of time, _she thought as she heard the nursery queen bullying Frostkit and Dapplekit while Sweetbreeze bullied Cloud for bullying the kits. Whoa, such word play.

Willowfeather contemplated the length of the sentence while she listened carefully.

"Frostkit, where I come from, kits as weak as you would be thrown out in the trash," Cloud bullied. _What's trash, _Willowfeather thought as she listened. No wonder Waterwish didn't want the kits go to Cloud.

"Stop teasing Frostkit!" Dapplekit protested. _Good on you, _Willowfeather thought. _That kind of attitude against injustice is what will get you the respect of your clanmates. _

"Why not? StarClan willing, you two will become _my _kits sometime," Cloud purred, her voice hideously sweet and threatening at the same time.

"StarClan willing? More like Dark Forest willing!" Frostkit piped up bravely.

"Kits! Out!" Cloud said sharply. "You too, Sweetbreeze! Let me talk to Dapple, please!"

Willowfeather stiffened, her ears pricked.

She heard the sounds of the kits and Sweetbreeze stumbling out of the den. When she peeked around, she noticed the queen was heading toward the fresh-kill pile, but where were the kits? Willowfeather ducked back only to find that Frostkit and Dapplekit had taken her place.

"Frostkit, Dapplekit! What are you doing?" Willowfeather hissed, so that no one would hear apart from the kits. "You aren't listening in on Cloud and Dapple, are you?"

"Why not?" Dapplekit asked peevishly. "Cloud is ignorant and weird and Dapple is a mouse-brain who shares my name."

"Respect your elders," Willowfeather scolded while silently agreeing with the young cat. The she-kit did make a pretty good point. "Or else I will talk to Sweetbreeze and Shadestar about this and I might be able to delay your apprentice ceremony!"

"Sorry!" Frostkit and Dapplekit spouted out at the same time. "We're both sorry! Stop copying me!"

"Both of you, be quiet. We'll listen in together," Willowfeather said, deciding that she would become a bad influence sometime so now was a pretty good time to start.

"Whoa, you're the best warrior ever!" Frostkit said, wide-eyed-

"Cloud! You nearly got us caught!" Dapple's voice flew out of the nursery, barely loud enough for them to hear through the thick walls of the nursery.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Cloud gasped. "I accidentally hinted to Willowfeather that I'm part of the breeding program!"

"You better have strong kits," Dapple said darkly. "Breeding program she-cats are in the program because you aren't good for anything else, but your kits have some potential sometimes. Rarely. But we need to raise our numbers if we hope to raise our numbers-"

Suddenly, Willowfeather noticed there was a huge hole at the bottom of the nursery wall. It was pretty easy to see the kits' big eyes and her paws.

_Fox-dung._

She was pretty sure Dapple had paused because he had just spotted the hole too.

Her warrior experience kicking in, she picked up the kits in her jaws expertly and ran back into the middle of the camp, dropping the kits under the protection of Sweetbreeze's watchful eye and darted into the warrior den.

_Act casual, _Willowfeather screamed to herself, as Dapple came in.

"Willowfeather, why were you listening in on us?"

"Listening in on what?" Willowfeather cocked her head innocently.

"Don't even try to lie. We saw your paws," Dapple growled. "And now we have to kill you to keep our secrets."

"One, you were yelling, not even trying to keep it a secret. Two, you are in my clan, easily outnumbered, so I'd like to see you try to kill me. Three, the nursery is close to the dirtplace exit. I was on my way there when I heard you two," Willowfeather lied.

Dapple suddenly looked ashamed of himself.

"I-I-"

"You betrayed The Traitors. I suppose the seed doesn't fall far from the tree."

**Okay, that chapter was terrible. I admit it. But I don't know how to improve it so…**

**Anyway, don't forget to review (I accept constructive criticism)!**


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